How George Pickens' breakout season will cost Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys are thriving on offense.

First-year head coach Brian Schottenheimer has the passing game firing on all cylinders, with a league-leading 271.3 passing yards per game. A lot of that has to do with George Pickens. The former second-round pick is playing the best football of his career in Arlington. Ironically, that might not be great news for Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones' pockets.

George Pickens is about to get paid

As pointed out by salary-cap expert Michael Ginnitti, co-founder of Spotrac, Pickens' strong play has raised his potential asking price for a new deal.

"Cowboys WR George Pickens' recent surge has elevated his baseline market valuation in our system up to $31.25M per year. The 24-year-old now projects toward a 4 year, $125M contract extension," Ginnitti explained. 

Of course, those are just projections, and the human factor will also make an impact on these negotiations. Pickens currently ranks second in the NFL in receiving yards (1,142) and tied for third in receiving touchdowns (eight).

He's been the most consistent pass-catcher for Dak Prescott this season, even ahead of CeeDee Lamb, who missed some games with an ankle injury. Jerry and Stephen Jones have been vocal about their desire to keep Pickens around for the long run.

Still, with Quinnen Williams now also getting a big chunk of the salary cap, the Cowboys will have to explore all their options. They could also place him under the franchise tag, although that would cost them around $28 million for the season.