New George Pickens update sounds alarms ahead of Cowboys' mandatory minicamp

Earlier this week, both Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer and quarterback Dak Prescott sounded confident that George Pickens will report for the team's mandatory minicamp on June 16, even though the wide receiver did not participate in voluntary portions of the club's offseason program.

It sounds like there is at least a concern about where Pickens will and won't be this coming Tuesday morning. 

George Pickens is not committed to attending the Cowboys' mandatory minicamp?

For an update shared on Thursday evening, Nick Harris of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram mentioned that he made a visit to Pickens’ youth camp and asked the 25-year-old about his plans regarding mandatory minicamp. 

"Pickens gave a shrug with an 'uhhhh' before a representative of his agency cut him off to say he would not be answering any more questions," Harris wrote. 

The Cowboys have made it clear that Pickens will not receive a multiyear contract extension this offseason, but he nevertheless signed his franchise tag worth roughly $27.3M for the 2026 season earlier this spring. It has been assumed Pickens wouldn't have signed the franchise tag if he planned to skip mandatory minicamp, as he would not have been subject to fines had he left the tag unsigned through next week. 

Instead, Pickens could be fined a total of $107,911 if he stays away from the team through the entire minicamp. That said, former NFL star cornerback and current analyst Joe Haden warned the Cowboys in May that Pickens could complete a holdout through mandatory minicamp to protest not receiving a multiyear deal. 

Why latest George Pickens development may concern Cowboys

"If Pickens planned on being at the Cowboys’ facility on Tuesday," Harris added, "what would prevent him from saying he would be present? That’s probably the biggest takeaway from Thursday’s interaction. He doesn’t gain anything by having everyone wait it out, unless he is truly still deciding for himself, along with his agent(s). If Pickens does not show up next week, he is subject to his first offseason fines since the minicamp portion is mandatory for all players."

Pickens has yet to publicly comment on the fact that he will remain on the franchise tag through the July 15 deadline for teams to sign tagged players to longer-term contracts. Perhaps he will speak with reporters and address the matter as soon as this Tuesday.