Sportsnaut
The Dallas Cowboys pulled off a blockbuster trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers for wide receiver George Pickens, leaving one team insider shocked at the move.
The Cowboys, who needed a WR2 to pair alongside CeeDee Lamb, sent a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick for Pickens and a 2027 sixth-round pick.
Dallas bypassed adding a receiver in last month’s NFL Draft, but Cowboys owner Jerry Jones hinted to reporters that he was working on “substantive” trades.
The Athletic’s Cowboys insider Jon Machota told the “Scoop City” podcast that he was taken aback by the trade considering how conservative the franchise has been recently.
“We’re over 24 months of not being whether you talk about the coaching change, you talk about any of the moves they’ve made, it’s been very, very conservative,” explained Machota. “For me, I’m thinking, OK, well there eventually has to be some type of big move. There has to be more than us just talking about when’s this contract going to get done. And so for them to actually do this, it surprised me.”
Machota added, “I did not think it would be George Pickens. I just did not think that would be a move they would be willing to make. So yes, I was absolutely surprised when I saw it.”
Pickens, selected by the Steelers in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, comes with red flags despite his productivity. Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin previously criticized Pickens’ maturity.
“He’s just got to grow up, man,” Tomlin said, via ESPN, after a Cincinnati Bengals game where Pickens was flagged twice for unsportsmanlike conduct. “This is an emotional game, man. These divisional games are big. He’s got a target on his back because he’s George; he understands that. But he’s got to grow up. He’s got to grow up in a hurry.”
In three seasons with the Steelers, Pickens recorded 174 receptions for 2,841 receiving yards and 13 total touchdowns.
The Cowboys reportedly do not plan to extend Pickens, who is in the final year of his rookie contract, and will let the season play out before deciding whether to retain him.
More must-reads:
