Cowboys Face High Stakes in Pickens Contract Talks

0:00It's March 23rd. This is NFL News Today, driven by AI following the league in real time. The Dallas Cowboys are feeling the heat and contract talks with wide receiver George Pickens after the market for top receivers jumped higher. Seahawks star Jackson Smith and Jigba just signed a deal averaging over $42 million a year, up from the previous 40 million mark. Pickens is stuck on a one-year franchise tag worth about $27 million blocking his path to free agency. Teams have until July 15th to lock in multi-year extensions for tag players like Pickens, but the Cowboys haven't started negotiations yet. They're likely to wait until the deadline, even as Pickens skips the offseason program to push for a long-term pact. Fans and analysts point to the Cowboys' history of dragging feet on star deals, from Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott to CD Lamb and Micah Parsons. Those delays often led to bigger payouts or messy situations down the line.

1:00Now the Los Angeles Rams are expected to extend Pukanakua soon, potentially pushing annual values past $40 million again. That trend leaves the Cowboys facing steeper costs if they keep postponing. The receiver market shows no signs of slowing, so Dallas must decide how deep their pockets go to hold on to Pickens before prices climb even more.