The Dallas Cowboys have a George Pickens problem.
The Cowboys placed the franchise tag on Pickens earlier this offseason, and he is set to make $27.29 million in 2026. Pickens and the club have until July 15 to negotiate a long-term deal.
Just a day before the NFL draft, Cowboys COO Stephen Jones announced Pickens will play on the franchise tag or he won’t play at all for the team. “There won’t be negotiations on a long term deal,” he told reporters on Wednesday afternoon.
At this point it’s unclear if Pickens will show up for organized team activities or continue a holdout. The news comes just hours after ESPN’s Adam Schefter floated an interesting nugget.
“It’s worth remembering going into the draft this weekend,” Schefter explained. “[The Cowboys] are nowhere with George Pickens right now. Nowhere with George Pickens. They are not really talking about an extension. They’re not close to an extension. They’re not getting a deal done at this point in time. He’s on the franchise tag. That situation is just sitting out there.”
He then added the Cowboys have an interest in top wide receiver prospect Jordyn Tyson.
“And the Cowboys are said to really like Jordyn Tyson so it’s just one more subplot in a draft filled with them entering Thursday night,” he said.
If Pickens decides to sign the franchise tag he’ll make over $27 million during the 2026 season before hitting free agency. If not, the Cowboys will need to think about bolstering their wide receiver corps beyond CeeDee Lamb and KaVontae Turpin.