Who Should I Start? George Pickens or Bucky Irving

Friday, February 27, 12:45 PM

The Dallas Cowboys officially placed the franchise tag on impending free-agent wide receiver George Pickens on Friday, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. Now the two sides will try to work out a long-term contract extension before the July 15 deadline, with executive vice president Stephen Jones saying that the team isn't putting any timeframe on it. Rapoport said he does not expect Pickens to report to the team's facilities "unless and until there is a long-term deal." Rapoport also wonders if there is a team out there that would be willing to give up a premium draft pick and sign Pickens to a long-term deal themselves to try to pry the 24-year-old away from Dallas for 2026 and beyond. If Dallas and Pickens are unable to reach a long-term deal by July 15, and he's not traded, he'd play the upcoming season on a one-year, fully guaranteed $28 million contract. All signs point to the former second-rounder playing in Dallas again in 2026, where he had a career-best 93 catches for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns in 17 regular-season games. Pickens is a locked-in WR1 in fantasy for this fall.