As Kevin Patra of the NFL’s website noted, the Dallas Cowboys and wide receiver George Pickens seemingly have an agreement worked out ahead of Wednesday’s 4 p.m. ET deadline for teams to sign tagged players to multiyear contracts.
The Cowboys will neither trade Pickens nor will they sign him to an extension, and he will play for the team on the franchise tag worth roughly $27.3M for the 2026 season.
During Wednesday’s edition of ESPN’s “Get Up” program, former NFL player, executive and current analyst Louis Riddick suggested that Pickens and the Cowboys won’t extend their working relationship beyond the upcoming campaign.
Will Cowboys let George Pickens walk after 2026 season?
“This sounds like a situation that is setting up for 2026 to be George’s last season [with the Cowboys],” Riddick explained. “George kind of realizes that. And that’s why he said, ‘Hey, look, you know what? I’m gonna sign the tender here and just kind of rip it up this year, and then let the chips fall where they may in the offseason in 2027. There’s really no other way to look at it.”
The Pittsburgh Steelers reportedly grew tired of Pickens’ alleged antics after the 2022 second-round draft pick spent the first three campaigns of his pro career with the AFC North club. Pittsburgh then traded Pickens to Dallas in the spring of 2025, and he recorded 93 receptions for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns last season.
However, Pickens was reportedly fined by the Cowboys at least once last fall for “being late to things.” He was also accused of looking “uninterested in playing football” on multiple occasions during the 2025 season.
Cowboys want George Pickens “hungry” and in a contract year?
“They feel as though the best version of George Pickens is the one that is hungry and trying to secure long-term financial stability in the form of a long-term contract,” Riddick said about the Cowboys. “And they are just not comfortable going ahead and giving him financial security and signing him to a long-term deal. And look, I mean, I guess you have to understand where Dallas is coming from with this. They have more information than anyone else. They’re the ones who were with him every single day last year. …They’re just not comfortable going ahead and giving him the guaranteed money that he probably will get on the open market from some football team.”
The Cowboys reportedly could afford to retain Pickens’ rights for 2027 via the franchise tag and also keep presumed WR1 CeeDee Lamb on their roster. Of course, it’s far too early to know if Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones will want to go down such a road next offseason.