George Pickens, Cowboys Contract Talks Updated by Stephen Jones After Franchise Tag Decision

George Pickens' long-term future with the Dallas Cowboys is up in the air.

Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones told reporters Wednesday the team decided it will keep the wide receiver on the franchise tag for the 2026 campaign and does not plan on engaging in talks on a long-term deal.

That is all the more notable since Pickens is yet to sign the franchise tag.

Dallas placed the franchise tag on the wide receiver in February, which gave both sides until July 15 to negotiate a long-term deal. While Jones and the team could change their mind before that deadline, his comments seemed fairly definitive.

If Pickens does play on the tag for the 2026 season, it will be worth $27.3 million.

This development comes after head coach Brian Schottenheimer told reporters in March, "Hey look, GP loves it here. We love GP. 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."

It seems like the Cowboys don't "love" him enough to sign him to a long-term deal, though, which could open the door for a potential trade if Pickens isn't interested in playing on the tag.

Yet Jones also told 105.3 The Fan earlier this month that Dallas has "had no one call with interest in George Pickens."

Perhaps that will change ahead of Thursday's NFL draft, especially now that other teams know more about the situation following Jones' comments on Wednesday. But if it doesn't, it could set the stage for Pickens' status with the team to be a major storyline going into the 2026 campaign.

The Cowboys landed him via trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers ahead of the 2025 season, and he responded with career-highs across the board with 93 catches for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns. He thrived in the team's offense and was a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing 7-9-1 season.

Expectations will be high in 2026 with Pickens lining up next to CeeDee Lamb and catching passes from Dak Prescott, especially after his performance in his first year with the team.

Yet the franchise tag situation has to be figured out first.