The Dallas Cowboys always knew they were getting into dangerous territory with George Pickens. As talented as he clearly is, he had plenty of baggage when he arrived in Arlington, and it was a risky gamble by Jerry Jones.
From a football perspective, it worked like a charm. Pickens broke out as the star he can be, and the team was much better with him on the field. Now, with his contract negotiations on the horizon, things might take a different turn.
The Cowboys will place the franchise tag on him, and that may mark the beginning of a long and ugly saga. According to Cowboys insider Clarence Hill Jr. of All City DLLS, Pickens might not even show up unless he gets a new deal.
George Pickens Can Become a Nightmare for the Cowboys
"The Cowboys will officially place the franchise tag on George Pickens today," Hill wrote on X. "As of now don’t look for Pickens to show up and/or play on the tag."
This is far from a surprise. Pickens has been a troublemaker from the very second he set foot in the league, going at it with fans and journalists on social media, constantly scrubbing his social media profiles and unfollowing the Pittsburgh Steelers, and even getting into fights during games.
Watching a player's coach, like Mike Tomlin, give up on him so early was a major red flag. He had plenty of experience with big-character, problematic wide receivers, and he clearly didn't want anything to do with them anymore.
Pickens' numbers in Texas were fairly impressive. He finished his first year with the Cowboys with career highs on targets (137), receptions (93), receiving yards (1,429), and touchdowns (nine), leading the team in all those categories. Then again, he also had some disappointing performances in big games, not to mention missing curfew while in Las Vegas.
ESPN Cowboys insider Todd Archer reported that the team met with the wide receiver's representation at the NFL Scouting Combine. Technically, they still have until July 15 to work out a new deal, so the franchise tag might only be a placeholder. One thing we can say for certain, regardless of how the contract negotiations play out, is that the Cowboys have expressed no interest in trading Pickens.
That said, it's also worth noting that Pickens' agent is David Mulugheta, the same guy who wasn't on speaking terms with Jerry Jones during the Micah Parsons saga. Both parties should approach this case professionally, and it's not the first time an agent has had a run-in with a general manager. There's precedent.
Pickens doesn't strike as the type of player who'll gladly and willingly play ball while on the franchise tag. His demeanor on a rookie deal was concerning enough for the Steelers, which is why they didn't want to deal with him once he got some actual life-changing money.
This is just the beginning of this saga, and with the way Jerry Jones drags out negotiations and runs his mouth on the radio, things might get ugly pretty fast.