Tagger’s remorse? That’s not really a thing, but it is some something that could yet be an option for the Dallas Cowboys when it comes to how they handle the George Pickens situation that is currently looming over what has otherwise been a very good few weeks for the team.
Yes, the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement does allow for teams that have offered one-year franchise tag contracts to star players to turn around and rescind those tag offers before the player can sign it. And while it is a decided longshot, the notion that the Cowboys could pull something similar to what the Panthers did a decade ago with defensive back Josh Norman–offer him the franchise tag tender before the deadline, then rescind the offer six weeks later–is at least out there.
CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones brought up the situation with Norman and the possibility of the Cowboys rescinding the offer to Pickens this week, and it would certainly qualify as an all-time petty move by Dallas if the Cowboys actually went through with it.
Cowboys Got Huge Year From George Pickens
Jones started by laying out the basics of the Pickens-Cowboys situation, which essentially stems from the fact that Dallas had hoped it was getting a solid No. 2 receiver when it traded for Pickens last spring. If Pickens could catch 50-60 balls and take pressure off CeeDee Lamb, the Cowboys would have been pleased. Instead, Pickens went for 93 catches and 1,429 yards, the fourth-most in franchise history.
The Cowboys wanted a good role player. They got a star. The problem arose after the season: Pickens was hitting free agency, and the Cowboys wanted to keep him without overpaying. The tag was the perfect vessel for that.
Pulling the George Pickens Franchise Tag Offer?
Since then, the Cowboys drama has come consistently, though confusingly.
Said Jones: “They have until July 15 to reach a long-term contract extension. But Stephen Jones, the COO of the team said, no we’re not gonna do that. He’s just going to play on the tag. OK, a little surprising. Doesn’t seem like George Pickens is going to rush to sign the tag. Then, what happens a day later? Word comes out he will, indeed, sign his franchise tag. Well, he hasn’t yet.”
Perhaps, then, the Cowboys could counter with a drastic move–rescind the tag agreement, or at least threaten to do so until Pickens signs it.
“This is always a possibility when teams issue the franchise tag—the team can rescind the tag before you sign it,” Jones said. “Doesn’t happen that often. We’re talking about things right now that don’t happen that often. … So, sometimes if you fear that, you say, ‘Whoa, hang on here, I am going to go sign it.’ So we’ll see ultimately what winds up happening with George Pickens, if and when he does sign it, he is under contract and can be dealt.”
Any Incentive for Dramatic Cowboys Move?
All that is well and good, but the incentive behind the Cowboys rescinding the franchise tag appears to be lacking. When it happened to Norman in 2016, the reason was that the Panthers were not going to get to his $15 million per year request, and decided they could better use the $13 million of the tag money elsewhere on the roster.
It was still a shocking decision at the time. The Cowboys do have Pickens’ $27 million on their books even without Pickens’ signature, and if they rescinded the offer, they’d have ample cap space on hand. But that’s not what their after.
The biggest use of the rescinding of the tag offer is to scare Pickens back to the table to sign the contract. It would be a pretty big bluff on the Cowboys’ part, and thus a longshot. But as Jones said, it’s on the table.
Cowboys Could Pull Dramatic Move on George Pickens Franchise Tag Contract