Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens (3) celebrates after picking up a first down during the first half of an NFL football game against the Washington Commanders on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Landover, Md.
Smiley N. Pool/Staff Photographer
Cowboys officials — from owner Jerry Jones, to his son, co-owner Stephen Jones, to coach Brian Schottenheimer — said numerous things about the state of the team during the NFL’s annual meetings in Phoenix. After the two-day event, we tell you what we learned:
George Pickens’ future is now
Wide receiver George Pickens is seeking a long-term contract. Club officials expressed a desire to achieve this, but their actions are saying something different.
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The club hasn’t started any substantial contract talks with Pickens’ agent. The only accomplishment is the $27.29 million non-exclusive franchise tag placed on Pickens. Team owner Jerry Jones said the club is content with the receiver playing on the franchise tag for the 2026 season. But why even say you want Pickens here long-term without starting any real contract talks?
“Well, I don’t and won’t get into our planning and structure of our team and our cap but the franchise tag is an integral part of all teams, but certainly an integral part of our strategy over the next two or three years as we look at how to keep the best players we can have relative to the cap,” Jones said.
Based on that comment, the Cowboys are willing to franchise Pickens again next year. If a player is franchised a second consecutive year, that salary is 120% of their previous year’s salary. If a player gets franchised a third time, a club has three options: The salary jumps to 144% of their second-tag salary, the player gets the quarterback tag or a 120% salary increase of the top five salaries at his position.
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It seems doubtful the Cowboys would franchise Pickens three consecutive years. If anything, they’re setting up for a bitter fight with him this summer if he refuses to sign the tag or reach an agreement for a contract extension by the July 15 deadline. Pickens is working out with quarterback Dak Prescott, but will he show up for the mandatory minicamp or training camp? That’s uncertain and something the club can’t answer right now.Â
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Tyler Guyton improvements
Injuries have slowed the development of left tackle Tyler Guyton. The first-round pick from Oklahoma played right tackle for the majority of his time in college, and is now being inserted at the premier position along the offensive line. Coach Brian Schottenheimer used the word “raw” when describing Guyton.
Guyton’s health has been an issue in his two NFL seasons.  At one point during the offseason, Cowboys officials noted Nate Thomas would compete with Guyton for the starting spot at left tackle. Schottenheimer was asked what improvements are needed from Guyton.
“It starts with his footwork,” Schottenheimer said. “Getting more comfortable, getting more balanced at the point of attack. And then there’s his hand usage. He’s really a young, raw left tackle, you know? Defensive lineman, right tackle in college, left tackle that’s missed a bunch of time, so the biggest thing for him will be having a great, healthy offseason. How do you do that? Well, (tight end) Luke Schoonmaker figured it out last year. He had a great plan leading up from February, March, into the offseason program, and that’s what Tyler Guyton’s done thus far.”
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No compensatory picks expected in 2027
The Cowboys were awarded two compensatory picks for this year’s draft. Both picks, No. 177 and No.180, will come in Round 5. But next year, the Cowboys don’t expect any extra picks and it’s affected what they’ll do in this year’s draft. There isn’t much desire from the Cowboys to give up a pick between the third and seventh rounds for a player, unless that individual becomes an instant starter.
“We always keep an eye, to be fair, we do always keep an eye on our picks this year and the next year and the year after,” Stephen Jones said. “We don’t want to go five years out and have to be looking at five years out. We all know where those are. No question, not looking at any compensatory picks next year. That is what it is.”
The lack of compensatory picks, a direct result of a net loss of unrestricted free agents during the previous offseason, speaks to how bad the 2025 roster was.
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“At the end of the day, when you don’t win games, I think that speaks to everything,” Stephen Jones said of the 7-9-1 record. He added, “everybody takes accountability in a situation like that.”
Most valued team with no salary cap
Baseball is possibly headed to a labor dispute with management. The push for a salary cap by baseball’s owners might lead to a lockout when the 2026 season ends. Of course, baseball players don’t want a cap. When you look at the big market teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and New York Mets, large payrolls don’t guarantee a World Series title. The Mets missed the postseason last year with one of the largest payrolls in baseball, but it means you sign all the best players to big contracts. What if the NFL didn’t have a salary cap? The Cowboys are the most valued team in the NFL, according to Forbes, at $4 billion. So if there was no salary cap in the NFL, would that impact the Cowboys in any way?
Here’s Stephen Jones: “I’m very comfortable in our system. I think we got a great (system), the NFL is a great league. I think we got a great system our players thrive in, organizations thrive in. I think it’s very competitive. You can have a team drafting at the top of the draft, now they’re drafting at the bottom of the draft, that’s great for the league, the competitiveness of the league.”
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Getting a third-round pick
When the Cowboys started the offseason, the franchise didn’t have a Day 2 draft pick (second and third rounds). Three weeks before the NFL draft, the Cowboys have a third-round pick. It was acquired when the team traded defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa to San Francisco for a third-rounder. Odighizuwa was drafted in the third round in 2021, and the Cowboys got that pick back years later. It was a difficult trade to make because the Cowboys valued Odighizuwa on and off the field. He was signed to a contract extension last year (four years, $80 million).
The third round is an important round for the Cowboys because they’ve found starters in center Cooper Beebe (2024), linebacker DeMarvion Overshown (2023) and a No. 3 wideout in Jalen Tolbert (2022) in recent years. In 2025, cornerback Shavon Revel was picked in the third round and is a projected starter for 2026.
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After the Cowboys traded for Kenny Clark and Quinnen Williams in 2025, Odighizuwa became expendable due to his high salary and skill level. The Cowboys valued Clark and Williams more than Odighizuwa.
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“It’s one of those situations with our resources and two defensive linemen (Clark and Williams), a lot of resources there, and to be able to not only from a pick standpoint, it was nice, but obviously financially, cap-wise,” Stephen Jones said. “It was a lot of resources tied up there, too. When we sat down and had our conversations with Christian (Parker) and where we needed to emphasize certain areas, we had to make a tough decision there. I can’t say it enough what a class act Osa was and what he did for our organization.”
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