Not many teams, if any, were hit harder by injuries last season than the Dallas Cowboys. While injuries always coincide with the return of training camp, fans can only hope that the team's injury luck regresses to the mean in 2025.
The Cowboys have several players still rehabbing from last year's injuries and it looked for a brief moment in Wednesday's practice that George Pickens would join them.
Pickens hit the ground in pain after failing to haul in a contested pass near the sideline. He was down for a minute, but once the crowd subsided he was seen having his calf stretched out, seemingly indicating a cramp. The newly-acquired wide receiver was able to jog off under his own power.
George Pickens suffers apparent calf cramp on day two of Cowboys training camp
While Pickens did not return to team drills, he had his helmet on and was catching passes from the machine after practice, per Patrik Walker of the team's official website.
This was a scary moment for the Cowboys, who obviously cannot afford Pickens to go down with an injury, regardless of the severity. Pickens himself is in a contract year. Assuming Dallas doesn't re-sign him before the end of the season, he is months away from a life-changing pay day.
While Pickens and Dak Prescott have connected on a number of passes in team drills over the first two practices, their chemistry still has a long way to go.
Prescott and Pickens had a miscommunication on a fairly simple route in Tuesday's practice. Prescott expected Pickens to peel off near the sideline, but Pickens kept running upfield and the pass fell incomplete. It could have been a pick-six if there was a defender in the area.
Pickens is primed for a career year. He has the best quarterback play of his career and he's never shared the field with a receiver as dynamic as CeeDee Lamb.
It remains to be seen if Pickens will practice on Wednesday, but it is highly encouraging that he was able to jog off under his own power and catch passes after practice. We'll have any and all updates the Cowboys provide, but it seems like this was merely a scare.