It looks like the Cowboys are finally all in. Two historic franchises, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys have finalized a trade for wide receiver George Pickens.
Dallas confirmed the deal on Wednesday after ESPN’s senior NFL insider Adam Schefter initially broke the news. Schefter noted Pickens’ agent also represents Micah Parsons, who is looking for and has earned a long-term extension from the Cowboys this offseason.
The Cowboys and Steelers agreed to a trade Wednesday that will send Pickens to Dallas for a 2026 third-round pick. The Cowboys will also send a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Steelers and get back a 2026 sixth-round pick.
Three weeks ago, Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones hinted the club was working on “substantive trades” involving players that could be completed before or after the NFL draft.
Pickens has been with the Steelers for all three of his NFL seasons and they selected the former Georgia Bulldog with the No. 52 overall pick in the second round in the 2022 NFL draft.
Last season, with marginal quarterback play, the 24-year-old hauled in 59 receptions for 900 yards and three touchdowns on 103 targets in 14 games. He came within a whisper of his second straight 1,000-yard campaign after dropping a 63/1,140/5 stat line the year before.
Pickens also did his thing in the postseason, catching five balls for 87 yards and a touchdown in the Steelers’ 28-14 AFC Wild Card Round loss to their division rival, the Baltimore Ravens.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe 6’3″, 200-pounder, who can take the top off downfield, represents a huge target for quarterbacks to find. He has found success despite playing with five different starting signal-callers during his time as a pro; Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, Justin Fields and Russell Wilson.
As talented as Pickens has been, there have been some drama both on and off the field. Bryan Murphy of Sporting News gave a detailed timeline, while ESPN’s Steelers reporter Brooke Pryor outlined some concerns in 2024.
“Between bursts of productivity and highlight-reel catches, Pickens’ third season with the Steelers included a series of on-and-off the field incidents,” Pryor wrote.
“Not only did he draw [coach Mike] Tomlin’s ire after being flagged for two unsportsmanlike penalties in a December victory against the Bengals, Pickens also arrived at Acrisure Stadium less than 90 minutes before kickoff of the Christmas Day game against the Chiefs.”
Steelers owner and president Art Rooney II said after the season in January that Pickens has “room to grow.”
“George is a very talented player who has room to grow,” he told reporters during an end-of-season press conference. “And we’d like to see him grow, and hopefully he realizes the potential that he has, but there’s definitely room for growth there.”
After the 2024 campaign, Pickens had one year remaining on his rookie deal.
However, it appears Pittsburgh is going in a different direction, dealing Pickens and dramatically shifting their pass-game attack, given his importance to the team.
Perhaps the addition of DK Metcalf via trade from the Seattle Seahawks made the team think long and hard that Pickens was more trouble than he was worth and expendable. Pittsburgh notably signed Metcalf to a four-year, $132 million contract extension as well.
However, Pickens was just one of two wideouts on the team last year to have more than 276 receiving yards, the other being Calvin Austin III with a 36/548/4 stat line. Now the Steelers need to find more help at the wide receiver spot, so there is a huge question mark at the position.
Last season, the Cowboys sent a 2025 fourth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers for Jonathan Mingo, who was largely ineffective, catching five passes for 46 yards but did not play with Prescott, who was injured. Jalen Tolbert, a third-round pick in 2022, set career highs last season in catches (49), yards (610) and touchdowns (seven, which led the team).
Now Pickens is with the Cowboys, who desperately needed a No. 2 wide receiver to work alongside Pro Bowler CeeDee Lamb. Dallas did not add any wideouts in the draft and lost Brandin Cooks in free agency to the New Orleans Saints. They did retain some other talents from previous drafts, including Jalen Tolbert.
Lamb did his job, leading the Cowboys with 101 receptions for 1,194 yards and six touchdowns before ending the season on injured reserve because of a shoulder injury with two games remaining.
The Cowboys simply needed extra help and depth. Pickens is an emerging star who should provide that immediately.
