Michael Irvin Takes Issue With Stephen Jones, Cowboys 'Flexing' on George Pickens

Michael Irvin isn't thrilled with one aspect of how the Dallas Cowboys and Stephen Jones handled the George Pickens contract situation.

Dallas Cowboys legend Michael Irvin. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Dallas Cowboys legend Michael Irvin wishes the team would have handled one thing differently when it comes to the George Pickens contract situation.

Of course, we know the story: the Cowboys slapped the tag on Pickens and it is very clear at this point that Dallas never had any intention of signing the veteran wideout to a long-term deal, which is understandable given the fact Pickens needs to prove he will not revert to his bad-boy self.

However, there was one aspect of the situation that Irvin did not like and it had to do with Stephen Jones publicly stating the team wouldn't discuss a long-term deal with Pickens, Irvin said on the DLLS Cowboys Podcast.

"We've made a decision that we're going to have George Pickens play under the franchise tag, which won't be a first for us. So there won't be negotiations on a long-term deal," Jones said in April.

"The only problem (I did have) is I don't need you to say there's no long-term deal in the works this year. I want to leave him hoping," Irvin said. "Stephen did that. I don't know why Stephen did that."

"That was a little flexing for me," Irvin added, before agreeing with one of the co-hosts that it was a "slap in the face" to Pickens.

#Cowboys Michael Irvin didn’t like Stephen Jones coming out and saying they weren’t going to have any long term talks this year with George Pickens:

“…I don’t know why Stephen [Jones] did that. That was a little flexing for me…”

(🎥: @DLLS_Cowboys on YT) https://t.co/F2YS0wAGG7 pic.twitter.com/RXu7D5vUkr

— Brandon Loree (@Brandoniswrite) May 27, 2026

Truth be told, it was a bit odd to see Jones say that, and for a few reasons. For starters, it's rare to see a team official make a public statement saying the team isn't going to talk to a player about a contract, and it was also very early in the process for Jones to make that statement, as the two sides had until July to get something done.

On the flip side, the Cowboys telling Pickens they had no intention of signing him to a long-term deal that early is the right thing to do for the player because it avoids leading him on. We'd suggest not being so public with it next time, though.

Another odd thing Jones did was to tell the world that there was no interest in a trade for Pickens from other teams.

"There is zero interest in a trade for George Pickens," Jones told Mad Dog Sports Radio's Adam Schein.

Granted, that's something we already figured to be true because of Pickens' past and need to prove he has changed, but to see a team executive say it publicly was pretty shocking and we can't imagine Pickens was too pleased about it.

What's next for George Pickens?

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

By all accounts, it appears that Pickens isn't going to create a stir and will play out the season on the franchise tag.

That's the right approach for him because, again, he's got to show multiple years of good behavior before the Cowboys or any team will be willing to bet on him with a lucrative, long-term contract.

We ultimately believe if Pickens does get a long-term deal in 2027, it won't be coming from the Cowboys, as they are already paying big money to CeeDee Lamb and can ill afford to stick themselves with two massive wide receiver deals.

Instead, the best-case scenario for all parties involved is Dallas tags Pickens again in 2027 and trades him to a team that will be willing to sign him a long-term contract.

But if we get to a point where the Cowboys tag Pickens again and want to keep him on that tag for another year, we don't expect things to go as smoothly as they have this year.