The Cowboys have bought themselves more time.
The Dallas Cowboys have placed the franchise tag on wide receiver George Pickens.
Pickens, whom the Cowboys acquired last May in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers, was scheduled to be an unrestricted free agency at the start of the new NFL year next month.
But the Cowboys have moved to take him off the open market, with the team announcing its decision to tag Pickens on Friday.
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What does the franchise tag mean for the Cowboys and Pickens?
The franchise tag essentially ties Pickens to a one-year deal worth $28million, which is the tag value for wide receivers this year.
More pertinently, it buys the Cowboys time to exclusively negotiate with Pickens over a contract extension that would keep the 24-year-old with Dallas for the long-term.
The Cowboys have until 4:00 pm ET on July 15 to sign Pickens to a long-term deal. If they fail to do so, he would play on his franchise tender, provided he agrees to sign it.
Pickens would need to sign his franchise tender by Week 10 of the 2026 season to be able to feature in the campaign. Were he to refuse to do so, the Cowboys would retain his rights and Pickens could be tagged again in 2027. There is no incentive for Pickens to go down that path.
Why have the Cowboys made this move?
This is all about Dallas having that extra time to talk with a player who was outstanding for the Cowboys last season.
Contract negotiations between the Cowboys and their star players have frequently devolved into fractious sagas that have reflected poorly on the organisation.
In the case of edge rusher Micah Parsons, the failure to come to terms with him on an extension led to him being dealt to the Green Bay Packers last offseason, with Dallas losing arguably the best player on the roster weeks before the season.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has made no secret of how much he enjoys those offseason soap operas. Jones is focused on keeping as much attention on his team as possible at all times.
In that sense, the fractious negotiations with the likes of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and Parsons have achieved their aim.
But, ultimately, the Cowboys need to be in the business of competing for championships, and having Pickens on their roster long-term would boost their hopes of doing so. Franchise tagging him is the first step towards getting him tied to an extension.
Ja’Marr Chase is the highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL with an average annual salary of $40.25m. Pickens is not likely to get close to that number, though contract analysis site Spotrac places his market value at an average annual value of $30.6m.
Pickens’ prolific 2025
After falling out of favour with the Steelers, Pickens delivered a reminder of his abilities with a superb first season in Dallas.
Targeted 139 times, Pickens caught 93 passes for 1,429 receiving yards and nine touchdowns, those numbers all represented career-highs for the former Georgia standout. Pickens also accounted for a career-high 73 first downs, averaging 15.4 yards per reception.
Among receivers with at least 50 targets, Pickens ranked tied-ninth with 2.35 yards per route run.
Despite Pickens’ excellent performances, Dallas still missed the playoffs, finishing the season with a 7-9-1 record in the first season under head coach Brian Schottenheimer.
Pickens firmly established himself as a true number one starting wideout with the Cowboys, who will hope he can be a focal point of their offense for many years to come as they aim to return to prominence in the NFC and attempt to end a wait for a Conference Championship game appearance that stretches back to their last Super Bowl season of 1995.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: 101greatgoals.com
