George Pickens arrived at the Dallas Cowboys this year as the missing piece the offense led by quarterback Dak Prescott needed. And for a time, that was the case. He perfectly filled in for Ceedee Lamb when Lamb went down with an ankle injury.
However, his performance has declined in recent games, and old habits that pushed him out of the Steelers organization are resurfacing. That is bad news not only for Pickens himself, but also for the team that entrusted him with a major role.
In the Week 15 home game against the Minnesota Vikings, Pickens vanished from the scene and was far from the player seen during the early weeks of the 2025 season.
With this in mind, Jerry Jones must think carefully and calculate the financial cost of giving the receiver a lucrative one-year contract that would hit the salary cap hard. It would be similar to what could have happened had Micah Parsons been signed to a massive deal with significant money involved.
Signing Pickens would be a major mistake, according to analysts
At present, the Cowboys already have Ceedee Lamb, who earns a salary hovering around $30 million or more per season. Paying another player at that level would be financial suicide for the franchise.
They would be left with no room to maneuver when it comes to adding players to strengthen the offensive line or the defense, which has been a complete disaster. By not signing Parsons, the Cowboys eased some salary cap pressure, but committing a massive contract to another wide receiver would put them right back into a risky position.
What the Cowboys truly need right now is a perfect balance between offense and defense. It has become clear that scoring more than 30 points means very little if the team is going to allow 40 in return.
One viable option for Dallas would be to place the franchise tag on Pickens and then trade him for a pair of draft picks, allowing them to find talent that is far less expensive and still capable of producing.
The Dallas Cowboys have said goodbye to the postseason
Although they technically still have a one percent chance of reaching the postseason, it is practically a fact that they are eliminated following the Week 15 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Now, as before, they do not depend solely on themselves. They also need Philadelphia to lose its remaining three games while Dallas wins all of its own. Only then could the Cowboys claim the top spot in the NFC East.
That scenario frankly appears complicated and highly unlikely to happen. Still, with that one percent chance, it is worth doing their part on the field and then waiting for a gift from Santa. After all, when it comes to the Cowboys, dreaming costs nothing.
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