It’s gone well past being the topic du jour for the Dallas Cowboys lately, into something closer to the topic du semaine or even du mois for the team and the way the roster will look going forward. No doubt, George Pickens has electrified the team here in 2025, but what the team’s fans and observers really want to know is whether the will still be in town in 2026.
Pickens, of course, is a free agent after the season, which is the main reason the Cowboys were able to pry him from the Steelers for the lost cost of a third-round pick and a late-round pick swap. There are a number of ways the Cowboys could keep him in town, just about all of which have been discussed here and elsewhere–a franchise tag, a short-term extension, a long-term extension.
But however it is, the question that lingers is whether the Cowboys and owner Jerry Jones will be OK with doing what it takes to keep Pickens.
George Pickens Suiting Up Outside the Cowboys?
And that was the topic put to Jones on Tuesday morning in Dallas, in his usual appearance on 105.3 The Fan. Could Jones, the question went, imagine Pickens playing for anyone but the Cowboys next season?
Jones was flat with his answer: “No, I do not, at this time.”
Jones said what the Cowboys potentially have going into 2026 could be the envy of the league–a star at quarterback, Dak Prescott, the best wide-receiver combo (CeeDee Lamb and Pickens), a good young offensive line, blossoming tight ends and Javonte Williams at running back.
“We’ve got two No. 1 receivers,” Jones said. “That’s just exceptional, right at the time when, guess what, our quarterback is probably the best that he has ever been. There’s more there. To have two receivers, wideouts, of this caliber, and candidly, we’ve got some other weapons out there that—you’ve got to look at that running back and how he’s playing, you’ve got to look at the tight ends that are coming in there as a group, what they’re contributing.”
Cowboys Marvel at ‘Unique’ George Pickens Skill
Oh, and the much-maligned Cowboys defense, which looked lost in the wake of the Micah Parsons trade in August, suddenly looks quite good.
“I like what we see on that side of the ball. And after what we did Sunday, you’ve got to get excited about what we’re doing on defense,” Jones said.
After watching Pickens tally 290 yards on 18 catches in the past two weeks, making remarkably acrobatic maneuvers in some cases, Jones said he is floored by the new guy’s ability.
“I have to get into the specific skill that he has—whether it’s mental or whether it is competitiveness—his ability to go get the ball, compete with the receiver,” he said. “His ability to, if you will, high-point the ball with his entire body is unique. Because he does that on the run, he does that in full-stride. It’s unique and makes it very, very challenging for the defender.”
More Money Than CeeDee Lamb?
Now, one of the questions emerging is how far the Cowboys would go to keep Pickens. Lamb is paid $34 million per season, one of the top salaries for a wide receiver in the league. It was long presumed that Pickens would command something more like $28-30 million per year. But there could be an issue if the Cowboys want to keep Pickens–and pay him more than the established WR1, Lamb.
It’s possible. But Jones added there’s not much point in concerning himself with that yet.
“Listen, there’s nothing we can do,” Jones said. “I know it’s fun, but there’s nothing that we can gain from speculating, and conjecture. The bottom line is that we’re in good shape. We built a trade so that we can have, potentially, our options. Of course, frankly, he’s playing better than we could have even anticipated.
“And he is—let me emphasize this again—an outstanding teammate. He brings energy to the team, even when he is not making some of those receptions. Bottom line, it’s working.”
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