George Pickens' future is up in the air at the time of writing, and that lends itself to all sorts of scenarios that could potentially play out.
The Dallas Cowboys and George Pickens are getting set for a big offseason of contract talks, and you can bet it won't be smooth sailing.
With the Cowboys set to franchise Pickens, just as our own Mike Fisher reported back on November 27, that has led some to think the franchise could look to trade the Pro Bowl receiver and get something in return.
Say, Maxx Crosby.
In truth, trading Pickens doesn't seem like a move that winning football teams make, and one could only imagine the backlash if the Cowboys trade Micah Parsons and then Pickens in back-to-back offseasons.
At the time of writing, we don't get the sense that Dallas wants to trade George, with Fish stating that some sections of people inside The Star would have an aneurysm if that were to happen.
So that tells you what the franchise thinks of Pickens.
But money talks.
And so does trade value.
It is here where NFL Network's Ian Rapoport offers his thoughts on what might entice Dallas to trade Pickens.
“They’re going to franchise tag him, I just wonder what
happens next,” Rapoport said. “He had a breakout year. These are the guys you don't let walk in free agency, and he's been great. What I really don't know is, are the Cowboys going to get an offer for Pickens that would allow them to trade him?
"They acquired him for a three, what if they franchise-tagged [Pickens], he gets the long-term deal that he wants, and they [Cowboys] get a two back? That's incredible value. I wonder if that's something that would be palatable for the Cowboys."
If I were Dallas' general manager, a second-round pick would not be enough for me to move on from Pickens. In truth, given what we saw George do, not only for the offense as a whole, but for individual players, I'm not sure I'm letting him go at all. Barring a godfather-like offer, of course.
Instead, use the cap space and draft picks to rebuild the defense, while keeping the offense together.
This isn't the first time we have heard Dallas trading Pickens and getting a second-round pick back, and one thing we know about Rapoport is that he doesn't say things for the sake of it.
So there might be some merit to his line of thinking. He got that from somewhere.
How Jerry Jones approaches Pickens' contract will tell us a lot about where the owner's mind is regarding building a roster capable of winning a Super Bowl.
The offense with Pickens is more than capable of winning it all. It just needs a defense that can complement it.
If you trade away Pickens, you lose a huge part of what makes your offense great.
And in the process, might throw away a chance at finally making that NFC Championship game.