Pickens is expected to seek a long-term deal next offseason, and after the latest receiver deal, we now know the starting point.
Dallas Cowboys receiver George Pickens wants a long-term deal, and so far, the front office has been unwilling to even enter discussions on it.
So, Pickens will play on the franchise tag in 2026, at roughly $27.3 million, and then will be hoping to play well and revisit this long-term contract he is after next offseason.
Of course, Dallas could easily tag George again, which is what some think the franchise will do, which bumps his salary up to $33 million.
But what if the Cowboys did want to give Pickens a long-term deal? What would it look like?
Well, some think a CeeDee Lamb-type deal at $34 million APY could be forthcoming, while others think something like Jaxon Smith-Njigba (four-years, $168.6 million), which is $42 million APY.
In truth, it likely lands somewhere in-between.
But we don't really know where Pickens would sit in the pecking order on contracts.
Until now. The Atlanta Falcons have agreed to terms with their star receiver Drake London.
Drake signed a four-year, $141 million contract with $100 million guaranteed, and it averages out to $35.2 million APY. That makes him the third-highest-paid receiver in football.
How does this impact George and Dallas?
Well, any contract offer the Cowboys, if they were to entertain it, likely starts at that. $35 million per season.
And that's without George playing a snap right now.
So, if he has another good year, posting 1,000+ yards and a handful of touchdowns, you can bet the starting point could be $40 million per season.
The London contract has given Pickens a starting point for his contract negotiations with whoever next offseason, and the Cowboys now know what it will likely take to keep George.
With Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb already making top of the market, or near top of the market money, adding Pickens into that salary cap pie could be a little tricky. Still very doable, but it would require some salary cap massaging from Stephen Jones and Co.
The Cowboys often wait too long to re-sign their star players, and they end up paying way more than they need to.
If they wanted to re-sign Pickens this offseason, you could argue a deal of four years at $120 million could have gotten hit done.
But now, just months later, that will get them laughed out of the room.
So, imagine what it's going to be in a year's time?
