Let’s take a trip down memory lane to the week 5 Sunday Night Football between the Steelers and the Cowboys of the 2024 season. The game was winding down, and the Cowboys’ nickelback, Jourdan Lewis, sealed it with a fumble recovery. Final score, 20-17. The Cowboys won, but the game wasn’t over yet. As the clock expired, Lewis confronted the Steelers’ WR, George Pickens, and taunted him. Pickens responded by grabbing Lewis’s facemask and pulling him to the ground. As a result, the league slapped both of them with some sweet fines—Pickens $10,230 for unnecessary roughness, and Lewis $11,255 for taunting. Tension was high, but the plot thickened. Following the game, Lewis was heard saying, “Pittsburgh needs a receiver. George Pickens is weak.” Ouch!

Though he later regretted his decision to comment on the wideout, stating, “Honestly, I shouldn’t have said that. It was an emotional game. There was some chatter on the field. One thing led to another. He had a moment, I had a moment. It was too emotional. I shouldn’t have said it.” But let’s be real—the heat never cooled down between Pickens and Lewis.

After spending eight seasons in Dallas, Lewis packed his bags and left for Jacksonville. To make it spicier, on Wednesday, the Cowboys agreed to trade for Pickens with the Steelers. Lewis was out of Dallas, and Pickens arrived in Dallas. So, Lewis made sure to let his feelings be known about what went down.

Lewis didn’t wait for a second to hop up on his official ‘X’ handle to share his reaction to the trade. “Confirmation, God wanted me in Jacksonville,” he said. It appears that he is more than happy to have moved out of Dallas just before Pickens arrived. Why? Simple: two guys who were at each other’s throats just a few months ago, being in the same locker room may not have been an ideal situation. Moreover, the Cowboys signing Pickens isn’t exactly seen as a win for Jerry Jones.

Pickens is headed to Dallas after spending three seasons in Pittsburgh. Last season, he recorded 59 catches for 900 yards and three touchdowns. The year prior, the 24-year-old posted a career-best season with 63 receptions for 1,140 yards and five touchdowns. But he comes with some off-field baggage.

The 24-year-old has a tendency to let his emotions take over and has developed a reputation for frequently arriving late to team meetings. According to Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, he was even late to several games during his three seasons. Mike Florio analysed the Cowboys’ decision to get Pickens and he wasn’t all in on it.

“Jerry said they were working on substantive trades, and I said it was (expletive) and that ‘Hey Jerry, we’re waiting,” Florio said on his Wednesday PFT podcast. “Well now they’ve got a receiver who has lots of untapped potential but in Pittsburgh who was, let’s face it, a malcontent. I knew for sure Pickens was going to be traded once they got DK.”

Meanwhile, if you’re thinking that Lewis was sneaking out after his comments on the trade, yeah, not exactly. In fact, the whole thing just took a different turn.

Jourdan Lewis received a challenge from the AFC South

Jourdan Lewis had been through everything in Dallas. The guy arrived in Dallas back in 2017 as this scrappy, undersized corner from Michigan—5’10” on a good day—and somehow just refused to go away. Eight seasons, 386 tackles, and enough clutch plays to keep his spot while the Cowboys kept drafting corners to replace him. His last season? Low-key ballin’.

He had 71 combined tackles, including a season-high seven combined tackles (four solo) during a 20–27 loss against the Bengals, 1.0 sack, and one interception. So yeah, the guy had a great stint with the Cowboys across eight seasons. Fast forward to now, and Lewis has now packed his bags from the NFC East to the AFC South. And that’s where his recent comments on Pickens’ trade get pretty interesting.

After that little scene from Lewis on his ‘X’ handle, one of the Texans (probably CJ Stroud’s) fan chimed in and replied Lewis, writing, “Well CJ Stroud bout to hit you over the head for 300 plus a game be careful what you wish for bitch.” Lewis didn’t flinch in his response.

“I’m done joking on here. wtf?” he replied. He isn’t sweating over CJ Stroud stuff. Sure, the quarterback racked up over 4,000 yards and over 3,500 yards in the last couple of seasons, but Lewis didn’t play scared in the NFC, and he’s not about to start now.

The thing is, Lewis wasn’t bluffing about joining the Jaguars. He inked a three-year $30 million deal that made him the highest-paid nickel corner in the league. Jaguars knew his worth, and he’s going to prove it as well. As for the Texans and Stroud… well, who doesn’t like a thrilling rivalry?