There are a few ways the Dallas Cowboys could go on free-agent receiver George Pickens, the breakout star for the team and one of the breakout players in the NFL in general. The first decision the team will have to make is whether it will use the franchise tag on Pickens, which can be done as early as February 18 (with March 4 as the last opportunity to put the tag on).
The tag, if he signs it, will keep Pickens in Dallas for another year at $28 million, but will still alone Pickens and the team to negotiate a new long-term contract before the season. But there have been reports and suggestions that Pickens would be none too pleased if he were tagged rather than given a long-term deal, and that he could hold out through offseason workouts, or even seek a tag-and-trade deal.
It’d be a big blow for Dallas’ offense to lose Pickens, who racked up 1,429 yards receiving, the fourth-most in the history of the franchise.
George Pickens: ‘I Can Just Wait on Them’
On Monday at the Pro Bowl games before the Super Bowl, Pickens spoke to DLLS Cowboys reporter Clarence Hill, who asked if he would be OK with being tagged. Pickens dodged answering the question directly but indicated that it is up to the Cowboys to make the first move.
Pickens referenced the possibility of the money that could have gone to star pass-rusher Micah Parsons–who was traded rather than paid an extension last year–going instead to him, an equation that owner Jerry Jones had earlier brought up.
Said Pickens: “I ain’t even thought about that because it’s been, kind of like you said, like some of his money and some of the space that he had, you see what I am mean? So, I can just wait on them, that’s all I can do, and chill with the guys.”
Pickens also said that he has not begun talking with the Cowboys on a new deal. “Not yet,” he said. “Going through a lot of Pro Bowl and just letting stuff float around. I feel like March 11, when free agency kind of opens up it’ll be more debacles, more talks and stuff like that.”
Cowboys Will Make the First Move on Franchise Tag
One thing that Pickens did seem frustrated by is the fact that Cowboys had one of the most productive offenses in the league but did not make the playoffs. He called it the No. 1 offense in the league, though the team was seventh in points, second in yardage and ranked as the No. 9 offense at Pro Football Focus.
Still, Pickens’ implication was clear–the Cowboys would have been a good team if the defense had held up its end.
“I always say with the guys, when I see Dak (Prescott) and CeeDee (Lamb), they always remind me, the No. 1 offense in the league,” Pickens said. “That’s really what I been thinking about the last couple of days when we haven’t been playing. We really had the No. 1 offense in the league while some teams still playing in the Super Bowl. See what I mean?”
Cowboys’ George Pickens Breaks Silence on Franchise Tag Option