The Dallas Cowboys completed a trade for wide receiver George Pickens with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday morning, and the plan for the Cowboys is for Pickens to play out his rookie deal, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.

It is intriguing that the Cowboys traded for Pickens and intend for him to play on an expiring deal. The Cowboys needed some help at wide receiver alongside CeeDee Lamb, and Pickens fits the mold of a second wide receiver that quarterback Dak Prescott has had success with in the past. Michael Gallup is a player that many have mentioned as a comparison when describing the role that Pickens is likely to play in the Cowboys offense.

In the full trade, the Cowboys are sending a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Steelers in exchange for Pickens and a 2027 sixth-round pick. It is an interesting trade given that Pickens could end up walking in free agency following the 2025 season.

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The Cowboys already have Prescott and Lamb on lucrative contract extensions, and are still working on getting Micah Parsons signed to an extension this offseason. Those three will take up a large portion of Dallas' cap room, so it remains to be seen whether or not the team will be able to re-sign a player like Pickens. However, if Pickens has a successful year in 2025 in an offense where he is seemingly a good fit, the Cowboys could make out relatively well, even if he does leave in free agency.

Given the Cowboys' tendency not to spend heavily in free agency, Pickens signing elsewhere after a potentially good 2025 season could net the team a compensation third-round pick down the line. That is not a given, but that could be the ideal scenario for the Cowboys in this situation.