Suppose George Pickens aces his one-year trial in 2025 and blends harmoniously with teammates and coaching staff alike. Suppose he posts a career year, topping 2023 totals of 63 receptions for 1,140 yards, and solidifies his status as one’s of the NFL’s top wide receivers. Now suppose the Dallas Cowboys identify him as an indispensable piece and as a player they’d like to re-sign.
With so many worthy players and only so much money to go around, some question the feasibility of retaining Pickens. CeeDee Lamb is just now beginning to play on his four-year, $136 million deal signed last summer, and Dallas curently ranks 10th in cap spending at the position. Shelling out top-10 money to a second WR wouldn’t be without ramifications, especially not to a fiscally conservative front office such as the Cowboys.
Assuming all of the above happened, Pickens would likely be in store for a contract somewhere near the parameters of Tee Higgins’ recent contract. Higgins, freshly signed to a four-year, $115 million deal, is the standard barer as an elite WR2 in today’s NFL. Paired with Ja’Marr Chase, the highest paid WR in the NFL, Cincinnati fields the most expensive WR room in the league. Their $57,546,902 beats the Cowboys current amount by more than $20 million today but if Dallas re-signed Pickens, they could very well exceed that amount.
If Pickens negotiates a contract extension of around $29 million per season, he and Lamb would combine for an average of $63 million in average annual salary. Such an amount would sit below the Bengals’ duo by $6 million but clearly rank near the top of the charts league wide and would similarly have a trickledown effect on the rest of the roster. As many NFL fans can attest, the Bengals have had their share of issues fielding a decent roster behind their high-flying passing attack. It’s fair to say their offensive line and defense have each struggled to carry their own weight in recent seasons. Some believe the Cowboys would be in store for a similar impact.
Ramifications
It’s not impossible, but it’d be highly doubtful the Cowboys would look to re-sign both DaRon Bland and Pickens, so Bland would be a free agent loss Dallas would be forced to digest. Additionally, cornerback Trevon Diggs could get an early release from his contract given his price tag and injury history. This would leave Shavon Revel to hold down the fort as the CB1 next season. Replacement level players or rookies would have to cover the other two cornerback spots, which isn’t an absurd ask but not an ideal one either.
The Cowboys would likely let linebackers, safeties and defensive ends organically churn out as well. In fact, that’s a likelihood regardless of what happens with Pickens. Marist Liufau and DeMarvion Overshown are primed to be the top two at LB while Marshawn Kneeland and Donovan Ezeiruaku are likely to team up with Micah Parsons at top three DEs. Even at defensive tackle things look manageable since the Cowboys rarely spend big at 1-tech and Osa Odighizuwa is already locked up as the 3-tech.
Offensively the Cowboys need Tyler Guyton to work out so they don’t have to invest more on the line. Tyler Smith is going to reset the market at guard so everyone else has to work out. It’s also always possible Terence Steele gets cut for a cheaper option at right tackle.
Running back appears to be a unit the Cowboys fill with rookie contracts and replacement level players, so that’s somewhere Dallas can save money. That goes double with tight end with Jake Ferguson being a likely free agent casualty. Finally, the Cowboys would have to keep costs low at the other WR spots with so much dedicated to the top two. Jalen Tolbert will likely leave over the offseason regardless so aside from KaVontae Turpin all the other WR spots will come cheap.
Verdict
All in all, it’s a digestible situation for the Cowboys. They’ll need their young players to play better and will have to be active in the draft to address their problematic secondary, but re-signing Pickens wouldn’t doom the Cowboys to an unmanageably lopsided roster. Again, this assumes Pickens aces his interview and takes the Cowboys offense to new heights.
It’s good to think the Cowboys have options. They don’t have to re-sign Pickens because they have a handful of other players worth re-signing instead. They also don’t have to let a potentially great player walk because they fear an unbalanced roster. Smart teams don’t let great players leave and if Pickens is great, the Cowboys know they can deal with it.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Here’s why a Lamb-Pickens long-term duo is wise even if it cost the Cowboys $63 million
Reporting by Reid D Hanson, Cowboys Wire / Cowboys Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
