Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens’s rookie contract expires at the end of the league year. He had a career season with Dallas after three seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, accumulating more than 1,400 receiving yards and being named both an All-Pro and Pro Bowler. As such, his value has markedly increased, putting the Cowboys in a bind—but he wants to stay in Dallas.
Pickens was asked about signing an extension during an interview published Feb. 2 on the Cowboys’ website.
“I would love to,” Pickens said. “But when you can’t control it, you kind of just hope for the best.”
Pickens was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He was traded to the Cowboys in the 2025 offseason. He had career highs in all three major statistical receiving categories: 93 receptions for 1,429 yards and 9 touchdowns. He also helped pick up some of the slack when veteran Ceedee Lamb missed 3 games due to injury. He was named a second-team All-Pro and was selected to his first career Pro Bowl; he won the NFC Offensive MVP at the Pro Bowl Games on Feb. 3.
Pickens was a valuable contributor in his time with Pittsburgh, developing a penchant for making acrobatic catches down the field.
His breakout season has made him much more of a hot-ticket item in this year’s upcoming free agency.
“I feel like, if anything, it went up,” Pickens said of his market value. “But me personally, my value is just a playmaker type of guy. I feel like any team or wherever I play, I can be playing in Canada, I just want them to know that I’m definitely a playmaker.”
Spotrac estimates his market value to be about $30.6 million per year; that figure would put him in the top 10 most expensive contracts for a wide receiver, in the ballpark of the 4-year, $120 million contracts signed by Detroit Lions wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown and San Francisco 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk.
That massive a contract poses a significant financial problem for the Cowboys. They are $31.3 million over the salary cap this offseason, and they have one of those top 10 receiver contracts already on the roster: CeeDee Lamb’s 4-year, $136 million contract comes with a $38.4 million cap hit this upcoming season, accounting for 12.66 percent of the Cowboys’ cap space.
Pickens said he is willing to make salary sacrifices to stay with the team.
“Just the ultimate best deal when it helps everybody,” he said. “If it’s the best thing for both parties, then I’m willing to do anything. But like I said, I can’t control it, so I just kind of chill.”
Pickens has not heard anything from the Cowboys about whether or not a new deal is in the works.
“No, not me personally,” Pickens said. “Definitely, probably my agent. He doesn’t tell me who he calls all the time, so definitely just kind of wait it out and hope for the best.”
Pickens said in a Feb. 2 interview with DLLS Sports that he was focused on the Pro Bowl festivities and did not expect to hear any movement until the new league year begins. The interviewer broached the subject of the Cowboys using the franchise tag on him, but the thought had not even crossed his mind because of some of the salary considerations stemming from the Micah Parsons trade.
“I feel like March 11th, around March, free agency kind of opens up, it'll be more talks and stuff like that,” he said.
