Fresh off receiving the franchise tag, George Pickens' status hasn't yet been confirmed for Dallas' offseason program.
It isn't bothering Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer much.
"Hey look, GP loves it here. We love GP," Schottenheimer said Monday at the Annual League Meeting in Phoenix. "We have plans for GP to be here for a long time. So, we'll let the business side of this thing play out and see where it goes."
As is typical for many franchise-tagged players, Pickens could sit out of offseason activities while awaiting a possible long-term deal (or the much more unlikely scenario in which another team offers him a deal with the understanding they'll have to surrender two first-round picks to the Cowboys). So far, there's been no movement on that front, a reality not unusual to the slow-moving Cowboys front office. Franchise-tagged players and their respective clubs have until July 15 to work out an extension.
"We're still a couple weeks away," Schottenheimer said of organized team activities. "It's gonna play out how it plays out and again, it's all voluntary. So we'll see where it goes."
Frankly, it might be in their best interest to wait things out and hope Pickens plays on the one-year franchise tag, a deal worth $27.298 million for the 2026 season. While talented and coming off his best season of his career (93 receptions, 1,429 yards, nine touchdowns), Pickens has proven to be a mercurial individual, a reality that made trading him elsewhere an easier decision for the Steelers after they acquired DK Metcalf in 2025.
If Pickens produces another prolific season -- a realistic outcome with quarterback Dak Prescott and running mate CeeDee Lamb returning -- the price will only increase. It might be a risk Dallas is willing to take, especially when considering how the front office treated other bigger names in recent years.
For Pickens, he'd understandably like contractual security. If he doesn't get it in 2026, he'll still have a great opportunity to prove his worth with the Cowboys, owners of the NFL's second-best offense in 2025, thanks in part to Schottenheimer's strategic flexibility.
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"You know, what I've learned about him was he likes to be moved around," Schottenheimer said. "We kinda learned that when CeeDee was out, honestly, cause CeeDee's been the guy we've moved around. So, when we had that stretch when he went crazy, we were moving him around. So, he's excited about that. He's looking forward to that.
"That's where, again, the fact that he's working and throwing with Dak and some of the other guys, that to me is more important than anything. Because you have to come up with that me-to-you factor. Dak's thrown to CeeDee for however many years, so those two guys work together I think it's going to be huge moving into Year 2."
The potential for explosive production remains high in Dallas. We'll see if it includes a multi-year deal or another prove-it season for Pickens.