Dallas Cowboys add much-needed weapon in trade for WR George Pickens
CeeDee Lamb has his running mate. A cryptic post on X late Tuesday night was the first hint that the Cowboys may have found their new "wide receiver 2" to pair with Lamb.
Cowboys fans woke up Wednesday morning to the breaking news from multiple outlets about a reported trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers for wide receiver George Pickens in exchange for a 2026 3rd-round draft pick and 2027 5th-rounder. Dallas will receive Pittsburgh's 2027 6th-round selection.
The Cowboys confirmed the trade later Wednesday morning.
The acquisition of Pickens fills a big need for Dallas, which has been looking to replace veteran receiver Brandin Cooks, who signed with New Orleans in free agency. The Cowboys opted not to draft a receiver, instead filling other needs by selecting guard Tyler Booker, defensive end Donovan Ezieruaku and cornerback Shavon Revel in the first three rounds of last month's draft.
Pickens is a 6-3, 200-pound former 2nd-round pick entering the final year of his contract and has a reputation as a somewhat mercurial personality. In three seasons, he has 174 career receptions for 2841 yards and 12 touchdowns, averaging a healthy 16.1 yards per catch.
Pickens led the league in yards per reception in the 2023 season, and has ranked in the top 10 each year since he was drafted out of the University of Georgia in 2022.
While some thought the Steelers may be looking forward to pairing Pickens with the recently acquired DK Metcalf, instead Pittsburgh gets a top-100 draft selection for a player it likely was going to lose in free agency next year. They return Calvin Austin, who had 53 catches last year, 2024 3rd-round pick Roman Wilson, who missed virtually all of his rookie season with injuries, and signed veteran free agent Robert Woods.
The Cowboys add a much-needed big play target for Dak Prescott. Pickens is known for highlight-reel catches going back to his college days at Georgia and even during his time as a 5-star recruit in high school in Hoover, Alabama. However, Pickens has also been criticized during his time in Pittsburgh for a perceived lack of effort as a run blocker.
Pickens, who had 59 catches for 900 yards and 3 TDs last year, should immediately fill the No. 2 wide receiver role on the Cowboys depth chart behind CeeDee Lamb, who had 101 receptions in 15 games last season, while drawing attention some attention of opposing defenses away from Lamb.
Jalen Tolbert had 49 catches and 7 TDs in 2024, and the Cowboys would like to expand 2-time Pro Bowl return man KaVontae Turpin's role on offense. He had 31 receptions and 2 TDs last year.
The Cowboys are spending lots of draft capital on their wide receiver room, trading future 3rd- and 5th-round picks on Pickens with the prospect of losing him in free agency next year. They also traded this year's 4th round pick six months ago for receiver Jonathan Mingo, a former 2nd-rounder who has two years left on his deal after catching 12 passes in 9 games for Dallas last season.
Pickens stirred up some controversy during his time in Pittsburgh. Near the end of a bad game in the 2023 season, he did not celebrate a late touchdown with his teammates, and later scrubbed anything related to the Steelers from his Instagram account. That prompted Steelers legend Hines Ward to weigh in, telling CBS Sports in an interview that his advice to Pickens was to keep things in perspective and that "it's not about you."
Some of Pickens' behavior has led to criticism form other players, including former Cowboys cornerback Jourdan Lewis. Following the Cowboys 20-17 win in Pittsburgh last season, Lewis called Pickens "weak" after Pickens ripped Lewis down by his facemask after the final play of the game.
