There is some hope among those within and around the Dallas Cowboys that perhaps the organization is changing the approach it has taken under team owner Jerry Jones for the better part of the past decade. In that time, the Cowboys have been reluctant to hire first-time coordinators on either side of the ball, reluctant to build up the team through free agency and reluctant to aggressively approach their own free agents. With George Pickens as one of the top free agents in the NFL this offseason, that’s a concern.
But there have been signs of a thaw in how the Cowboys do business. The hiring of 34-year-old defensive coordinator Christian Parker from the Eagles, who has never held a coordinator’s job before, is the first sign. The fact, too, that the Cowboys say they’ve begun talking about a new contract with free-agent running back Javonte Williams is another sign.
A third sign: Jones said he does intend to use free agency as a way to bolster the roster in the coming weeks.
Cowboys Have Not Spoken With George Pickens Agent
Now all the Cowboys need is some movement on the Pickens front, because even with the defense desperate for help, there is no player who is more significant to what the team could accomplish next season than Pickens.
Pickens logged career highs with 93 catches, 1,429 receiving yards and nine touchdowns last season after coming over from the Steelers in a trade.
Alas, despite the positive vibes coming from the Williams discussion, there is no such positivity on Pickens, at least not yet. As Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News wrote on Monday: “The Cowboys have not held any contract talks with Pickens’ agent, two people briefed on the situation told The Dallas Morning News.”
GettyCowboys owner Jerry Jones
Cowboys Past Contract Pattern Won’t Do
Watkins points out that there’s no reason to panic on the Pickens front, but it is a reminder of how Dallas handled its last three major negotiations. In 2024, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb held out and did not sign a new deal until the end of training camp in late August, and quarterback Dak Prescott did not sign until the day of the Cowboys’ opener.
Those deals got done, but both were more expensive than they might have been had Dallas acted earlier–other players who signed earlier drove up the markets on Lamb and Prescott.
Last year, the Cowboys spent the whole summer negotiating with Micah Parsons before finally unloading him in a trade.
George Pickens Repped by Micah Parsons Agency
But those were extensions, situations where a contract for the coming season was already in place. There is not much time for the Cowboys to wait around on making offers for Pickens, who is an unrestricted free agent this offseason, and can sign with anyone. It also does not help that Pickens’ agent is David Mulugheta of Athletes First, whom Jones insulted last year during the Parsons negotiations (Mulugheta represents Parsons).
The league year opens on March 11, and there will be teams eager to make offers on Pickens. The Cowboys could use the franchise tag (one year, $28 million) on Pickens, but he probably would not welcome that and could hold out for a long-term deal.
Either way, conducting the Pickens business with a bit more haste than usual is important.
As Watkins wrote: “The Cowboys can avoid any mess with Pickens if contract talks pick up at some point during the offseason. But first, they have to speak with his agent.”
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