The dust has settled on the George Pickens trade. Two weeks ago, the Dallas Cowboys acquired wide receiver George Pickens from the Pittsburgh Steelers. We wrote an article about why the Cowboys would make a move for Pickens, citing an “all-in” mentality and the desperate need for someone opposite CeeDee Lamb. While that’s a positive outlook on the move, there are risks involved with bringing George Pickens to the Cowboys that must be considered.

Character Concerns On The Field

The Steelers are known for wide receiver drama in the Mike Tomlin era. Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and Martavis Bryant are all receivers who brought extra attention to their team aside from their play on the field for extracurricular activities and behaviors. You can add George Pickens to that list who has always been in the headlines dating back to his Georgia Bulldog days.

Aside from the small taste the Cowboys got when George Pickens yanked Jourdan Lewis’ facemask after the Cowboys-Steelers overtime win last year, here are other notable moments with Pickens:

• Participated in the Georgia and Georgia Tech fight (Ejected & Suspended for the first half of the SEC Championship Game)
• Unnecessary Roughness & Taunting penalties in the 2023 game against the Los Angeles Rams
• Unsportsmanlike Conduct fine after a 2023 Cincinnati Bengals game
• Fined for his facemask penalty against the Washington Commanders in 2024
• Fight with Browns CB Greg Newsome in 2024
• Unsportsmanlike & Taunting fines after the 2024 Cincinnati Bengals game
• Unsportsmanlike Conduct in a 2024 game against the Kansas City Chiefs

Pickens was fined more than $200,000 in 2023, but the fines didn’t stop there when he was fined for multiple instances in 2024. This is a list of repeated violations for George Pickens.

Each instance has its own story, but there is a clear pattern that George Pickens sometimes acts before he thinks. You add Pickens to the Cowboys, who were the 4th-most penalized team in 2024 (128 times), and only the Jets have more penalties than the Cowboys in the previous two seasons.

Brian Schottenheimer will be in his first season as a head coach, so he’ll have to correct the penalty issues that were self-inflicted wounds to the team last year, while adding a player who has costly decision-making.

Pickens Won’t Be Around in 2026

George Pickens is in a contract year. Both Pickens and the Cowboys are entering 2025 without a deal in place. This benefits Pickens with the opportunity to show he’s matured and deserving of being paid like a #1 wide receiver, a title he’s publicly proclaimed over himself. This benefits the Cowboys to not be locked into Pickens beyond this year, but what if Pickens does ball out?

The Cowboys are struggling to manage money as it is. The team waited until the last minute to sign CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott after the market was set multiple times. The Cowboys also have to pay Micah Parsons, Tyler Smith, DaRon Bland, Jake Ferguson, DeMarvion Overshown, and Brandon Aubrey, who all have expiring contracts in 2026 and 2027. This is the price to pay for drafting well, but the Cowboys might be forced to let one of these players walk. The likelihood of paying Pickens money for a WR1 is slim and could lead to the Cowboys only having Pickens for one year.

The Cowboys gave the Steelers a third-round pick in exchange for Pickens. Since the Cowboys draft so well, here are the 3rd-round picks from 2021-2024:

• DT Osa Odighizuwa (starter, just re-signed through 2028)
• DL Chauncey Gholston (16 starts the previous 2 seasons, signed with the Giants this offseason)
• CB Nahshon Wright
• WR Jalen Tolbert (15 starts in 2024 with career-highs in receptions, yards, and TDs)
• LB DeMarvion Overshown (exploded in 2024 before major knee injury)
• C Cooper Beebe (starting center in rookie year)
• LB Marist Liufau (started 9 games in rookie year with 50 tackles and 2 forced fumbles)

The Cowboys have been lucky with third-round picks in the last four years. Of these seven selections, six contributed and started for the Cowboys last season. All the production came from guys on team-friendly deals. Giving up the pick for Pickens means the Cowboys could have potentially given up a high-quality player for 2026. The Cowboys would just have to rely on a compensatory selection for 2027, which could be as high as a 3rd or 4th-round pick. Even with that compensation, you give up some ground on the draft board.

Can you even win in 2025?

To make a deal like this, the Cowboys signified “all in” on 2025 and the first campaign of Brian Schottenheimer’s tenure. If the Cowboys have no vision of George Pickens wearing the star in 2026, then they’re banking on a good chance in 2025. It helps that Schottenheimer inherits a team that had 12 wins in 3 consecutive seasons (2021-2023) before an injury-riddled 2024 kept the team at 7-10. But if you look at this schedule, it’s daunting. Some of the major takeaways after the Dallas Cowboys’ schedule release are that the team has the 5th-toughest schedule in the NFL and a grueling stretch from Weeks 12-17, playing 11-win teams for six weeks straight.

What happens if the team doesn’t make a push? George Pickens might not move the needle as far as people expect, and the Cowboys could miss the playoffs back-to-back years. Then what? Was the move to acquire Pickens for one year worth it? Typically, organizations make this move if they feel like they’re a piece away. For the Cowboys, it doesn’t appear to be the case.

There’s a lot of risk involved. In the long term, the Cowboys won’t have much to show for this trade in 2026. If Pickens stays, does that mean one of these homegrown Cowboys walks in free agency? In the short term, Pickens’ antics could cost the Cowboys meaningful games and a spot in the postseason, even if his production is on par with being a #1 wide receiver. And for Schottenheimer’s first year, he’ll have to navigate a strong personality on his team.

After pondering, how do you feel about this Cowboys trade? Who won the deal between Pittsburgh and Dallas? Let us know in the comments section below.