The Dallas Cowboys made one of the biggest trades of the NFL offseason when they acquired George Pickens from the Pittsburgh Steelers.
While Pickens will potentially have a seismic impact on the offense, it remains open for debate whether the Cowboys will re-sign him after the season. A second-round pick in 2022, Pickens is set to become an unrestricted free agent in March.
A lot of Cowboys fans probably want Pickens to be more than a one-year rental, but those hopes took a big hit on Monday afternoon when the New York Jets and Garrett Wilson agreed to terms on a lucrative extension.
It's a four-year, $130 million extension that includes $90 million guaranteed, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. It gives Wilson a whopping $32.5 million per year, which makes him the fourth highest-paid WR in terms of annual average value.
Jet's Garrett Wilson extension complicates Cowboys' hopes of re-signing George Pickens
This obviously complicates Pickens' upcoming free agency.
Pickens and Wilson were both drafted in 2022, and while Pickens has not produced to Wilson's level, he will command a king's ransom if he reaches the open market.
Considering that the Cowboys still have not extended and have Tyler Smith and DaRon Bland, both of whom are entering the final year of their rookie deals, it is hard to envision a world in which Dallas signs Pickens before the end of the season.
The market could inflate even more if other WRs sign new deals. That includes the Falcons' Drake London, who was the No. 8 overall pick in 2022, and the Lions' Jameson Williams, who was the No. 12 pick that year. Commanders star Terry McLaurin is currently staging a holdout as he awaits an extension.
Read more:Cowboys rocked by possible training camp holdout (and it's not Micah Parsons)
While Pickens' numbers pale in comparison to that of Wilson, Pickens has averaged 947 receiving yards per year to go with a lofty 16.3 yards per catch in three seasons.
Tee Higgins just got $28.75 million per year from the Bengals and he's not even their No. 1 receiver. Jaylen Waddle makes $28.25 million per year as the Dolphins' WR2. DeVonta Smith, the complement to A.J. Brown in Philadelphia, has an AAV of $25 million.
Pickens could set a baseline of $20 million per year right now if he wanted. If he produces at the level that's expected of him in the Cowboys' offense, that could easily climb over $25 million.
While there's a lot of time between now and the 2026 offseason, the Wilson extension serves as a harsh reminder of just how difficult it will be for Dallas to keep Pickens long term.