George Pickens has sure made the Dallas Cowboys glad they traded for him from the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Pickens enters Thanksgiving Day ranking second in the NFL in receiving yards. He's been an absolute star for Dallas.
The Cowboys wanted him to be the ideal WR2 alongside CeeDee Lamb. Lamb had never played with another wide receiver as talented as Pickens.
This was a chance to expand the Dallas passing game in a big way for QB Dak Prescott. And although the Cowboys' record doesn't fully reflect it, the passing game has gotten a huge boost from having Pickens.
The Steelers? They could certainly use Pickens right about now.
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George Pickens trade details
The George Pickens trade took place in May 2025.
The details:
Cowboys get: George Pickens, 2027 6th-round pick
Steelers get: 2026 3rd-round pick, 2027 5th-round pick
This trade happened after the Steelers had already picked up DK Metcalf in a trade from the Seahawks. And instead of having a two-WR star pairing, they stuck with Metcalf as their top dog and sent Pickens away.
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Why did the Steelers trade George Pickens to the Cowboys?
The Steelers traded Pickens to the Cowboys because of money, drama and the future.
At one time, Pickens may have seemed a lock to sign a long-term deal with Pittsburgh.
But once the Steelers traded for Metcalf and gave him a huge four-year extension, the writing was on the wall: Pickens wouldn't be getting a contract like that himself.
That made trading him logical, to get assets in return before his deal ran out.
Pickens also had a number of moments that created conflict in Pittsburgh regarding his effort and commitment.
The Steelers evidently decided they didn't need that.
And if Pittsburgh wasn't going to extend Pickens, it made sense to trade him and get draft picks in return to build for the future.
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