John Harbaugh, NY Giants catch warning straight from Cowboys’ George Pickens

The mind games before the battle just keep coming. As the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys iron out the final details before the Week 1 matchup in East Rutherford, wide receiver George Pickens took a shot at John Harbaugh‘s squad. Namely, at New York’s defense and cornerback room, which is anchored by Greg Newsome II, who Pickens has history with.

While Cowboys owner Jerry Jones showed respect for Harbaugh, Pickens and the players on both sides keep going after each other. After the Giants decided on their cornerback game plan for Pickens and CeeDee Lamb, the first move was made in the chess board. Shortly after, Pickens got echo of Newsome calling the Giants’ cornerback room “the best in the NFL,” and reacted to the bold statement with a warning ahead of Sunday night’s showdown in the Meadowlands.

“That’s definitely how he should feel. Now, how we should feel, I’d definitely say a completely different story. That’s cool that he thinks that,” Pickens said, via The Athletic’s Jon Machota, warning Newsome and the Giants not to lie to themselves. “He should definitely feel like that, but I feel like we’re definitely not thinking the same thing.”

Newsome and Pickens go at it

Even though Newsome downplayed the idea of unfinished business with Pickens, it’s been made clear time and again that there is no love lost between the two. The fact that Pickens took notice of Newsome’s recent statements and one-upped his divisional rival is further proof.

Head coach John Harbaugh of the New York Giants.

This isn’t their first rodeo. Pickens and Newsome shared a division in the NFL before, yet it was anything but friendly. As they meet again, the two neighbors prove old habits die hard and that neighbors are in no way synonymous with allies.

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Giants vs Cowboys: Must-see TV

Both Pickens and Newsome have made loud statements. As the saying goes, they must walk the talk now. Thus, the season-opening divisional showdown set to take place at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 13 has now another layer added to it.

Indeed, watching Jaxson Dart, Odell Beckham Jr., and the revamped Giants’ offense take on Caleb Downs and the Cowboys‘ defense is exciting as well, but the matchup between Pickens and Dallas’ offense against Newsome II and New York’s defense simply has enough vitriol to make fans forget about the rest of the stars on the field.

As if an NFC East showdown between the Cowboys and Giants couldn’t have even higher stakes, the back-and-forth verbal battle between the vocal wideout and cornerback on each team just provided even more bad blood. Soon, their words won’t be enough, and it will all be decided on the gridiron, on a turf field that is a source of debate in its own right. There may be no better stage for the first Sunday night game of the season to take place.