George Pickens: Everything you need to know

The Cowboys aren't sure if Pickens will participate in the offseason program after they ended negotiations on a long-term contract, but the team is optimistic he'll sign his franchise tag before Week 1, Jon Machota of The Athletic reports. Pickens likely was hoping for a multi-year deal with a signing bonus larger than his $27.3 million franchise tag. The Cowboys are hoping he'll respond to their direct approach, having informed agent David Mulugheta last week that they don't want to discuss a long-term contract and hope Pickens will play under his tag. For now, Pickens isn't technically under contract and thus can't be fined for missing practices or meetings. If he were to remain unsigned at the start of the regular season, he'd then miss out on $1.52 million each week until he signed and reported to the team. In the meantime, trade rumors are sure to swirl, especially given that this announcement comes on the eve of the 2026 NFL Draft. Pickens would have to sign his franchise tag to facilitate a trade, with any team acquiring him then having until July 15 to hammer out a long-term contract. That said, Cowboys COO Stephen Jones gave the impression that he expects Pickens to eventually sign his tag and play for the team in 2026.

Cowboys COO Stephen Jones said Wednesday that Pickens will play out 2026 under the franchise tag, with no negotiations toward a long-term deal, Jonathan Jones of CBSSports.com reports. It's unusual for a team to make this kind of announcement, especially with nearly three months remaining before the July 15 deadline for franchise-tagged players to negotiate contracts. Pickens hasn't signed his tag and thus can't be fined for missing team activities. The tag is worth $27.3 million, which means he'd miss out on around $1.52 million per week if he declined to sign before the start of the regular season. Pickens hasn't made public comments on the situation, but it's probably safe to say he isn't thrilled.

Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer said Monday that he has spoken with Pickens but is unsure whether the franchise-tagged wide receiver will attend voluntary team workouts this spring, Tommy Yarrish of the team's official site reports. Pickens currently is slated to play out the 2026 campaign on the one-year, fully-guaranteed $27.29 million franchise tag, though he and Dallas still have until mid-July to negotiate a potential long-term deal. The 25-year-old has not yet officially signed his franchise tag, however. Schottenheimer said, "We have plans for [Pickens] to be here for a long time, so we'll let the business side of this thing play out," and the coach confirmed that he hasn't sought any assurances that Pickens will attend any voluntary team activities. Cowboys COO Stephen Jones echoed Schottenheimer's statements, noting that "everybody would like to have a long-term deal" but "[w]e're just not gonna comment as we move forward on negotiations."