Why the Cowboys aren’t giving George Pickens a long-term contract extension originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Dallas Cowboys knew that when they traded for George Pickens last offseason from the Pittsburgh Steelers, he had just a single year remaining on his contract.
That was always going to make decision time arrive quickly. Franchise tag, contract extension or let him walk? Those were looming from the moment Pickens arrived.
In the end, it appears this offseason the Cowboys have arrived at keeping Pickens on the franchise tag but not necessarily getting a long-term contract done with him.
If that’s how it holds up, then it will just push the decision along to next offseason.
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Why aren’t Cowboys signing George Pickens to a long-term contract?
There are a couple layers here.
One is that CeeDee Lamb is already one of the NFL’s highest-paid wide receivers.
“Carrying two of the highest-paid receivers in the league would be a salary cap challenge,” ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote in a new article on Tuesday.
There’s also the matter of simply figuring out if Pickens is the guy that Dallas really wants around for the long haul.
“There are explanations for why the Cowboys were able to get a player as talented as Pickens from the Steelers a year ago for only a third-round pick, just as there are explanations for why no team sent him an offer sheet after Dallas tagged him,” Graziano writes. “Pickens’ time in Pittsburgh included persistent questions about consistency and focus, and while the Cowboys’ 2025 experience with him was positive, it’s not unreasonable for them to wait another season before making the kind of commitment his on-field performance deserves on its own.”
Another season with Pickens will give the Cowboys plenty of data on him, which should allow them to make an even more informed decision next offseason.
