For many NFL wide receivers, it would be one of the best highlights of their career. It\u2019s middle of the pack at best for George Pickens.<\/p>\n
Midway through the first quarter last Sunday in Charlotte, Pickens hauled in a leaping grab across the middle over one diving defender, ran 10 yards and leaped over another diving defender. What probably should have been a 15-yard gain quickly turned into a 31-yard play.<\/p>\n
\u201cOut of all of the plays I\u2019ve made in my life, it\u2019s not dead last, but definitely in the middle somewhere,\u201d Pickens said. \u201cJust because I\u2019ve done crazier stuff as far as practice, games. I\u2019m pretty sure everybody has seen the catch when I was with the Steelers. I\u2019ve just done wilder things, to me. And I feel like the play on Sunday is kind of wild to everybody else.\u201d<\/p>\n
George Pickens showing off his athleticism \ud83d\ude24<\/p>\n
DALvsCAR on FOX\/FOX Onehttps:\/\/t.co\/HkKw7uXVnt<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/KBJI4p9lO6<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NFL (@NFL) October 12, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe catch\u201d Pickens was referring to happened against the Cleveland Browns in the third game of his 2022 rookie season. That\u2019s the one that surprised him the most.<\/p>\n On that play, Pickens reached back and snagged<\/a> a Mitchell Trubisky pass along the sideline as he was falling backwards. Pickens needed only his right hand to complete the play with his body parallel to the ground.<\/p>\n At only 24 years old, there appears to be a lot more highlights ahead for the star wide receiver. But playing under the final year of his rookie contract, will that future remain in Dallas?<\/p>\n \u201cI wouldn\u2019t mind it,\u201d Pickens said. \u201cThe guys in the locker room are super cool, the energy is great. I always want to showcase my talents.\u201d<\/p>\n Although he declined to get into specifics about a future contract, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones spoke highly of Pickens on Tuesday.<\/p>\n \u201cAs you know, even that has a competition to it, the very aspect of it,\u201d Jones said when asked about starting contract extension talks with Pickens. \u201cHe is doing more than we did expect or that we could have expected. What\u2019s really special is he\u2019s a real plus to have around the team. He\u2019s a real plus around his teammates, he\u2019s a great plus around those coaches. Those coaches really think highly of him. He\u2019s not only doing it on the field but he\u2019s doing it as a part of the team concept. That\u2019s very important in his particular case and it should be noted.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll weigh that. We knew full well that if things really went like we want them to go that certainly we need to think about having some (salary cap) room available if we\u2019re going to pay a second receiver at that level.\u201d<\/p>\n The Cowboys can make a Pickens contract work, especially after not re-signing Micah Parsons. Several teams pay two wide receivers near the top of the market, including the Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, Philadelphia Eagles and Miami Dolphins.<\/p>\n Pickens has the same agent, David Mulugheta, as Parsons. Just because a deal didn\u2019t work out with one player doesn\u2019t mean it can\u2019t with another. If Pickens continues to perform like he has through the first third of the season, it\u2019s difficult to envision that Jones would let him walk next March, which could involve the Cowboys using the franchise tag on the wide receiver.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s nothing personal here,\u201d Mulugheta said last month on ESPN\u2019s \u201cFirst Take.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s a business transaction as far as the contract is concerned. So if George Pickens does what we expect him to do, which is be one of the best receivers in the NFL this year, we\u2019ll have those conversations with the Cowboys. And if they\u2019re open to having that dialogue with us, and negotiating a long-term deal, then we\u2019d love for George Pickens to be a star with a star on his helmet.<\/p>\n \u201cBut if that\u2019s not the case, then obviously we\u2019ll see what else is out there for him. But again, this is not going to affect any negotiations moving forward for us.\u201d<\/p>\n What\u2019s most important to Pickens in regards to his NFL future?<\/p>\n \u201cDefinitely winning,\u201d he said. \u201cJust because that\u2019s been my resum\u00e9 the whole time. I won in high school, I won at Georgia. Definitely winning, I always think about winning.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the Cowboys having one of the NFL\u2019s best offenses, if they can\u2019t get their defense figured out, there might not be much more winning this season.<\/p>\n Pickens had his best game as a Cowboy on Sunday, catching nine of his 11 targets for 168 yards and a touchdown. It\u2019s the most receptions and second-most yards he\u2019s had in his career. He has now gone five consecutive games with a touchdown and his six receiving touchdowns are tied for the league lead. His seven receptions of 25-plus yards are tied for second in the NFL. His 525 receiving yards are third. A lot of credit also goes to Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who has been at the top of his game this season and is the best quarterback the fourth-year wide receiver has played with.<\/p>\n Pickens has proven he can carry the load as Dallas\u2019 No. 1 wide receiver as that\u2019s the role he\u2019s been playing the last three games with CeeDee Lamb out with a high ankle sprain. Lamb is expected to return Sunday. He was a limited participant in his return to practice Wednesday. The last three games, Pickens had been moved around more, similar to how the Cowboys have used Lamb in the No. 1 spot. Look for Pickens to continue to get opportunities in that role even with Lamb back.<\/p>\n \u201cIt took George a little while for us to be able to move him around,\u201d Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said. \u201cThe one thing that George has proven over these last couple weeks is our ability to move him around, which makes us more difficult to defend. Because really CeeDee was the guy we were trying to move around and George was kind of one spot. But George has been terrific with us, putting him in different spots, different positions. And I think he kind of likes it because it holds his attention and keeps him dialed in. I think it\u2019s a great thing. There\u2019s one ball, we know that. They\u2019re both really good players. So we\u2019ll see where the defense makes the ball go.\u201d<\/p>\n CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens at today\u2019s practice pic.twitter.com\/xdCfS6IuGn<\/a><\/p>\n