The Dallas Cowboys have to manage a few key players who will hit free agency in March, none more important than star receiver George Pickens.
The Cowboys will look to keep Pickens on a long-term deal, but NFL insider Judy Battista believes he is destined to be franchise tagged. Battista believes that Dallas will do everything it can to prevent him from leaving and use the tag as a “placeholder” while they work out a long-term deal.
“There is almost no doubt that Pickens is going to be tagged,” Battista wrote. “Traded from Pittsburgh to Dallas last May, he had a career season, logging 93 receptions for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns in the final year of his rookie contract. He also helped free up CeeDee Lamb in the pass game, and Stephen Jones has said the Cowboys want Pickens in Dallas. This should be a placeholder as the sides work toward a long-term deal, but the Cowboys have also shown a willingness to trade top players for draft picks. You can’t rule anything out, but it seems like Pickens will be a Cowboy.”
The Cowboys sent a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers to acquire Pickens in the 2025 offseason. While not a lot to acquire a player of his caliber, Dallas will not want to let him walk away for nothing.
Pickens had a career year with the Cowboys and ended the year as their leading receiver, with CeeDee Lamb missing three games due to injury. With Pickens on the roster, Dallas had multiple 1,000-yard receivers in the same season for the first time since 2019.
