The Cowboys will franchise tag Pickens, and it appears there isn't a rush to sign the receiver long-term.
The George Pickens contract saga appears destined to go long into the Dallas Cowboys' offseason, because, of course, right?
With Javonte Williams' future sorted after his three-year, $24 million deal was announced, attention turns to Pickens and his situation.
The Cowboys will franchise tag George; that's nothing new for regular readers here, but what will the franchise do once that is done?
Will they then work feverishly to get a long-term deal done? Or will they be fine with Pickens playing on the $28 million tag to get another season of further evaluation?
The scariest part is we aren't sure just yet.
Plus, we don't know how Pickens would feel playing on a one-year deal after his 1,429-yard, 9-TD season in 2025.
So there's a lot to consider.
However, does Cowboys' COO Stephen Jones feel compelled to get a long-term deal done with George before the July 15 franchise tag deadline?
“I wouldn’t put a timeframe (on it); once you have a tag, you have a tag, and we know George is going to be here, and that’s where we are,” Jones said.
That isn't great news.
It's also not entirely the truth.
There is indeed a "timeframe,'' and it's etched in stone: Dallas has until March 3 to make the tag move, and then both sides have until July 1`5 to forge a new deal or Pickens plays on the tag.
That's the timeframe. And it's real.
It does appear the Cowboys are content with having Pickens play on the franchise tag and let this thing play out, but as we know, players don't like playing on the tag.
But is there a downside to placing the tag on Pickens, at $28 million for the 2026 season, as it pertains to Dallas being active in free agency?
“No, we know what it is, we can do anything we need to do," he added.
So that is a little better.
But the big worry here is that the Cowboys, once the tag is placed on Pickens, will leave it at that and not even try to negotiate with him for what many think will be a contract that starts at $30 million APY.
Dallas has been proactive this offseason with Williams, and ideally, having an offseason without a big contract distraction would be great.
Last year, it was Micah Parsons; the year before, CeeDee Lamb; and the year before that, Dak Prescott.
So the Cowboys have a history of letting their star contracts drag out when there is zero need to.
Will George be different? I think you know the answer to that.