George Pickens is set to play his second season with the Dallas Cowboys under a franchise tag ($27.3M). Despite the front office doubling down on having "long-term" plans for Pickens in Dallas, an analyst believes a multi-year extension is highly unlikely.

In an episode of the Fully Loaded Podcast, hosts Cris Carter and Shawn Meaike discussed that Pickens could be playing his way out of Dallas, as his elevated production could increase his market value, which may lead to him being franchise tagged again.

“He's [Pickens] still playing for a long-term contract, but they could franchise him again,” Cris Carter said. “Well, there's a guy who goes by the initials CD and wears number 88...They've determined he's the number one guy. It's impossible to have your quarterback who's the highest paid. The receiver who's the fifth highest paid, that's 95 million right there."

According to Carter, the Cowboys wouldn't sign Pickens for a long-term extension considering the contract value of quarterback Dak Prescott ($60M annually) and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb ($34M per year)

"If you give Pickens another deal, he's going to want more than CeeDee - $35 to $40 million," Cris Carter said on the Fully Loaded Podcast on July 7. "So, how are you doing that? $130 – $135 million at those three guys? No. Jerry’s into making money. He’s not going to do it.”

Carter further said that if the Cowboys pay all three elite players at market value, the team may have to shell out an estimated value of around $130M-$135M, as Pickens would be part of the elite WR market that demands nearly $35M.

Pickens enters the 2026 season after a breakout campaign in 2025, posting all career highs in receptions (93), receiving yards (1,429), and touchdowns (nine), earning his first Pro Bowl nod and Second-team All-Pro honors.

The host argued that the Cowboys likely did not anticipate Pickens' breakout season when they traded for him, leaving the team with a difficult decision regarding his contract extension.

If Pickens elevates his 2025 production, the Cowboys may have to choose between using the franchise tag on him again or trading him rather than signing a long-term deal.

ESPN analyst says Cowboys' wide receiver duo is their biggest strength

Heading into the 2026 season, ESPN analyst Mike Clay pointed to the Cowboys' WR group as the biggest strength for the team.

"Similar to last year, we'll focus on a wide receiver room that helped the Cowboys lead the NFL in passing yards in 2025," ESPN's Mike Clay wrote on July 6. "It starts with CeeDee Lamb, who, despite missing five games over the past two years, has delivered 1,000-plus receiving yards in five consecutive seasons." 

Lamb posted 75 receptions for 1,077 yards and three touchdowns across 14 games in 2025, missing three games due to an ankle sprain.

Clay further added Pickens as one of the dynamic WR duos with Lamb in the league, as Pickens finished among the top seven wideouts in receiving yards, touchdowns, and yards per target (10.4).

With Ryan Flournoy and KaVontae Turpin providing valuable depth, the Cowboys are expected to field one of the NFL's most explosive passing attacks in 2026.

Should Jerry Jones keep George Pickens long-term, or is letting him play out the franchise tag the smarter financial move? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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Written by

Archana Ramakrishnan

Edited by

Shubhi Rathore