George Pickens seems to send defiant message to Cowboys after Stephen Jones comments

While Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens recently signed his franchise tag worth roughly $27.3M for the 2026 season, he isn't required to show up for work until the team's mandatory minicamp gets underway on June 16. 

It sounds like Pickens may want it known he's not thrilled with the fact that he'll be playing in a contract year for a second straight season. 

George Pickens may not voluntarily report to Cowboys anytime soon

"Today was the first team workout for the Cowboys since George Pickens signed his franchise tag, but he was not present," Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram shared on Tuesday evening. "Even though the workouts do have high team attendance, it’s all voluntary at this point. Nothing is mandatory until June 16."

Of course, Pickens is hardly the only non-rookie to be away from his team at this portion of the offseason program. That said, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones made it known that he expected that Pickens would participate in at least some voluntary workouts. 

As Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk noted, Pickens could remain away from the Cowboys without being fined until mandatory minicamp sessions get underway. 

Why George Pickens may be sending a message

Former NFL star cornerback and current analyst Joe Haden recently warned the Cowboys that the Pickens situation could get "messy" due to the 25-year-old's desire to receive a long-term deal. Meanwhile, the Cowboys have made it clear that they have no intention of giving Pickens a multiyear contract before the deadline for teams to sign tagged players to such agreements arrives on July 15.

Fair or not, some may wonder if Pickens' actions indicate he may want to learn if any team would trade for his services and then sign him to a contract that would guarantee him money beyond the 2026 season. For what it's worth, ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano wrote for a piece published on Tuesday that "no team sent [Pickens] an offer sheet after Dallas tagged him" earlier this offseason. 

Thus, Pickens' only option likely will be to play for the Cowboys later this year unless he is willing to forfeit money by skipping mandatory practices and regular-season games.