The Dallas Cowboys recently concluded a controversial 2026 NFL Draft class that included two first-round selections and seven overall selections. They were also dealing with some drama arising from George Pinkens' contract situation.
While Pickens recently signed his franchise tag tender, ensuring a salary of $27.3 million for the 2026 season, there were several different scenarios in play. The Cowboys were reportedly unwilling to discuss a long-term contract extension, which meant the only outcome for Pickens was to either sign the one-year franchise tag, sit out the season, or be traded to a different team.
Still, would the Cowboys really trade a superstar for the second year in a row just because they couldn't agree on contract value? A trade may be more realistic than many people expect.
According to ESPN's NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, Pickens recently considered a trade from the Cowboys and even evaluated what his potential options would be with another team. Nevertheless, after a brief period of Pickens assessing his trade and/or contract value market, his camp decided he would be better off signing the tag and remaining with the Cowboys for the upcoming campaign.
"Well, my understanding is that Pickens at least looked around, gauged his market as to what a potential trade might look like if he could come up with compensation and a new deal. He wants a long-term contract, so this isn't the ideal situation for him. But he signed the tag because it guaranteed him $27 million. I'm told he really likes Dallas. He's been working out with Dak Prescott this offseason; he's a And expecting a big year. But it looks like he's going to have to do another year to get that big payday. So, now that he's signed the tender, I don't expect a trade or a new deal at this point, but have been trying to figure out what his market might look like since they won't negotiate.
Jeremy Fowler on George Pickens
Chances are, Pickens will play the season on the franchise tag. Of course, if the Cowboys somehow fall flat early in the season, more drama could develop, leading to even more trade speculation.
Still, the best outcome for Pickens might be to forget about all this contract drama and hope he ends up as a Pro Bowl selection for the second consecutive season. At that point, the Cowboys or any other team will have no choice but to pay him top dollar.
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