FRISCO — Cowboys co-owner and COO Stephen Jones told 105.3 The Fan (KRLD-FM) on Friday that wide receiver George Pickens missed the team bus to Monday’s game against the Raiders, leading to him getting benched.
Pickens and fellow receiver CeeDee Lamb were benched for the first series of the game for disciplinary reasons. Lamb said he missed a 10 p.m. curfew on Sunday night. Lamb was out having drinks and dinner with Pickens at a nearby casino/resort.
And while Lamb was on the second of two team buses headed to the game, Pickens was not. It’s unknown how Pickens got to Allegiant Stadium.
NFL teams arrive through a special tunnel underneath stadiums, at least three to four hours before kickoff.
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It was coach Brian Schottenheimer’s decision to sit both.
“He’s not going to play favorites with anybody,” Jones said on The Fan. “He felt very strongly (about) that, that was part of it. I think a lot of people thought they had to be together because they are great friends, but believe it or not, one was of the night before leading into the morning and the other one was missing the buses.”
Pickens, the Cowboys’ leading receiver, has been late to numerous meetings during the 2025 season. This is the first known time team officials have publicly acknowledged Pickens was disciplined for a transgression of team rules.
Lamb missed the first three snaps of the game while Pickens was out for four plays.
The discipline didn’t bother either player in the game. Lamb caught five passes for 66 yards with a touchdown. Pickens caught nine passes for 144 yards with a touchdown. He was also penalized for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for jumping on the goal post after catching a second-quarter touchdown.
It was the second consecutive game Pickens was penalized for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. He’s tied for third in the NFL among wideouts with four accepted penalties this season.
Despite his off-the-field issues, he’s been one of the productive players in the NFL this season. He’s second in the league in yards (908), tied for third in touchdowns (7) and 11th in catches (58).
Team officials are open to signing Pickens to a long-term contract when he becomes a free agent next spring.
On Friday, team owner and general manager Jerry Jones said in a separate interview on The Fan that he had a problem with players partying the night before a game.
“Yes, I do,” Jones said. “I don’t have any problem with partying but when we’re rolling in there and we have our special teams meetings, which usually has most of the team, but still the idea is this is a business trip.”
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