Who Should I Start? Michael Gallup or George Pickens

Thursday, March 20, 1:39 PM

The Washington Commanders announced on Thursday that they signed free-agent wide receiver Michael Gallup to an undisclosed deal. Gallup was drafted in the third round (81st overall) by the Dallas Cowboys in 2018 out of Colorado State and spent the first six years of his NFL career in Dallas before signing last offseason with the Las Vegas Raiders. The 29-year-old announced his retirement before ever playing in a game with Vegas before deciding he wanted to come back in 2025. He'll now return to the NFC East, where he'll serve as receiving depth behind Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel Sr. and Noah Brown, at the very least. It's a poor landing spot for Gallup potentially returning to fantasy relevance, as he'll also be competing with Luke McCaffrey and K.J. Osborn for playing time. Fantasy managers can probably avoid Gallup in drafts this fall.

Wednesday, May 7, 1:02 PM

The Dallas Cowboys' plan is for newly acquired wide receiver George Pickens to play out his rookie deal in 2025, a source tells ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. The Cowboys swung a trade for Pickens and a 2026 sixth-round draft pick with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday in exchange for a 2026 third-rounder and a 2027 fifth-rounder. The 24-year-old Pickens gives Dallas a big upgrade at the No. 2 receiver spot behind All-Pro CeeDee Lamb. Although Pickens is going to have plenty of competition for targets from Lamb -- he would have had that in Pittsburgh as well alongside DK Metcalf -- the move to Dallas should be overwhelmingly positive for his fantasy value in 2025. Pickens will now be working with quarterback Dak Prescott in an offense that could be very pass-heavy when considering their mediocre backfield options. The former second-rounder has 2,841 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns in his three NFL seasons.