Cowboys' Leverage With George Pickens Isn't As Strong As Chris Broussard Thinks

The sooner the Dallas Cowboys know what the deal is with George Pickens and his intentions when it comes to playing on the franchise tag, the better.

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Dallas Cowboys have an interesting situation brewing when it comes to wide receiver George Pickens.

The Cowboys have already made it clear they do not intend on giving Pickens a contract extension and now the veteran wide receiver will have to play on the franchise tag in 2026, a tag he reportedly intends to sign at some point.

But even if he signs the franchise tag, there is no telling if Pickens will choose to hold out and demand a trade.

If that happens, the Cowboys definitely have some leverage here, as FOX Sports' Chris Broussard points out. He believes Pickens is a luxury for Dallas and not someone the team needs to be successful.

“He has no leverage. The Cowboys do not need George Pickens," Broussard stated. "He’s a luxury… We just gotta fix our defense, because we’re gonna put up 27 points a game with or without you.”

The problem with Cowboys' leverage

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

There are a few things we know that gives the Cowboys some leverage with Pickens.

We know Pickens isn't going to hold out for an entire season if he's unhappy. We know that Dallas doesn't need two receivers capable of ripping off 1,400 yards like Pickens did last season to make the playoffs.

But we also know that a Pickens holdout can create multiple issues. Not only will it create a major distraction, but Pickens missing a chunk of the most important part of the offseason hinders his ability to prepare and be at his best come Week 1, which could have a huge negative effect on the offense.

If the Cowboys let that headache carry on late into the offseason and ultimately decide to trade him, that leaves the Cowboys in a precarious spot because the options to replace him will have dwindled down to nothing.

Granted, the Cowboys don't even need to replace Pickens with a wide receiver of equal talent, but even a more prototypical No. 2 target is unlikely to be available for Dallas if the team decides to trade him during training camp, for example.

No matter how promising he looked in 2025, Dallas cannot depend on Ryan Flournoy to be its No. 2 behind CeeDee Lamb because he simply isn't proven yet. The cowboys certainly can't depend on the rest of their receivers on the depth chart to move up one spot to try and help fill the void.

So, there's most definitely a time component to all of this.

Dallas can't just sit on its hands and hope everything works out because that's a risky bet to make on the mercurial wideout who has an agent in David Mulugheta who is notoriously not a proponent of having his clients play on the tag.

So, while the Cowboys have leverage now, that's going to shift more and more to Pickens' side the longer this situation drags on without any kind of cemented commitment from him.

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