Dallas Cowboys WR George Pickens didn’t get mega long-term contract extension he hoped for after a break-out All-Pro campaign in 2025.
At least not yet.
He will have to settle for a $27.3 million salary in 2026.
This was already known but it become official Wednesday afternoon when the deadline for Pickens to sign a deal with the Cowboys ahead of the 2026 season came and went quietly into the abyss.
The Cowboys placed the franchise tag on Pickens in March, guaranteeing him $27.3 million for next season. The Cowboys announced in April that there would be no negotiations and they expected Pickens to play the tag.
Pickens signed the tag just before the 2026 NFL Draft, giving rise to speculation that he could be traded. It was much ado about nothing.
After missing all of OTAs, Pickens showed up for the Cowboys mandatory minicamp in June and let the world know he has no beef with the Cowboys and their lack of negotiations.
He said was happy to be Dallas and planned to be a training camp on Day 1. There would be no hold out and was okay with playing the season on the tag.
Of course, after signing the tag he had no choice.
And if there was any hope of a last minute contract Hail Mary that dissipated at 3 pm on Wednesday when the annual NFL deadline for franchise-tagged players to sign multiyear contract extensions expired.
If a player and their team did not agree to a long-term deal by that date, the player must play the upcoming season on the one-year guaranteed tender. And because the July 15 deadline has already passed, teams are no longer permitted to negotiate long-term extensions with their franchised players until the end of the season.
So Pickens, who made $3.65 million last season in the final year of his rookie deal, will have to get by with $27 million in 2026.
It’s not the market-based number he had hoped to get. The baseline for any long-term deal for Pickens likely starts at $35 million annually.
But Pickens is being patient and waiting. He knows his time is coming as he is anticipating a new deal or unrestricted free agency in 2027.
The clock will start kicking as soon as the 2026 season kicks off.
