Steelers, Cowboys Trade Almost Didn't Happen

The Pittsburgh Steelers made the move to trade George Pickens away to the Dallas Cowboys despite his production with one year left on his rookie contract.

Despite having good production, Pickens off-field woes proved to outweigh his on-field positives, leading to the team dealing him away for a third round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft as well as a pick swap on Day 3 of the same draft.

That being said, according to NFL insider Jordan Schultz, the Steelers wideout was not the first choice for the Cowboys. According to Schultz, Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman was considered before Pickens was, but talks never proceeded to a good point with the Ravens.

“During their pursuit of a receiver, the Cowboys also looked into a trade for Ravens WR Rashod Bateman. Those talks didn’t go far, and Dallas ultimately struck a post-draft deal with the Steelers for George Pickens. Dallas’ search for another receiver was a months-long process,” Schultz wrote.

It seems the Ravens were never truly interested in parting with Bateman, he was just simply on the minds of the Cowboys' front office and the interest was one way only. Now, Pickens joins a Cowboys' receiving room that includes CeeDee Lamb, Jalen Tolbert, KaVontae Turpin and himself. The Cowboys are now in a similar position receiver wise that the Steelers were in before the Pickens trade.

Now, the Steelers are back in the same position they were in last offseason, with a top-tier receiver at the top of the room, and little depth behind him. However, wide receiver depth as an issue likely ranks far behind other issues such as quarterback prowess and secondary depth.

The Steelers are likely in for a long season, and the fact that their top receiver from last year wasn't a losing team's top choice is a rough outlook on the year to come without him.