George Pickens traded to Cowboys: How Jerry Jones pulled off no-lose move for explosive WR

FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones’ “all in” 2024 offseason was a total bust. However, following an injury-plagued 7-10 campaign, he realized the error of his ways.

He and Dallas COO/EVP Stephen Jones’ “selectively aggressive” 2025 offseason is now a bona fide hit following the Wednesday trade acquisition of 24-year-old wide receiver George Pickens and a 2027 sixth-round pick from the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick. Pickens is averaging 16.7 yards per reception across the last two seasons, a figure that leads the entire NFL among 61 players with at least 110 catches since 2023. Dallas needed a field stretcher opposite All-Pro wideout CeeDee Lamb, and Jones got Dallas one: Pickens’ 12 catches of 30 or more air yards in 2024 were the second-most in a single season since 2006 when the stat first began being tracked. With 2023 second-team All-Pro quarterback Dak Prescott equipped with two standout receivers for the first time since 2021, when Amari Cooper was last in town and when Prescott threw a career-high 37 touchdowns, offensive fireworks can return to Dallas.

The move to go get Pickens solidifies the Cowboys’ offseason as one that could set up Dallas to make a postseason return in 2025 and one that could stabilize the Cowboys for years to come. Many of their free agency moves this year were short term, but they at least added depth that could allow Dallas to withstand the injury bug that crippled its roster last season. Ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft, Jones hinted at having “two pretty substantive trades”  in the works, but he needed to see how the draft board fell before diving fully into those offers. 

Once he missed out on Arizona Wildcats All-America wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, who was selected eighth overall by the Carolina Panthers, the need for a legit WR2 became a blinking light. Jones revealed Dallas had McMillan “very high” on its draft board after the end of the first round. Following reaches in the 2023 and 2024 drafts, the Cowboys stuck to their draft board built by vice president of player personnel Will McClay, his scouts, and Dallas’ coaching staff “better than we’ve ever done it” in the words of Stephen Jones following the conclusion of the 2025 draft. That led to a meat-and-potatoes class with five of the nine picks being used on either offensive or defensive linemen. It also powered Dallas to picking up potential Day 1 starters with each of its first three selections. 

Of course, no wide receivers were selected, which was puzzling considering 2022 third-round pick receiver Jalen Tolbert and his 610 yards receiving were second on the team behind Lamb in 2024. That’s when Jerry indicated he didn’t have to be done at the wide receiver position even though the draft was over. 

“The train has not left the station if improvement is needed on what we have on campus,” Jerry Jones said. … “Our No. 114 pick was traded to Carolina for Jonathan Mingo. … My point is … we don’t have to be through at receiver in any way.”  

The trade for Pickens punctuates a Cowboys offseason in which all members of the front office and its fanbase enter 2025 mostly satisfied and ready for the games to begin — outside of needing to extend All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons before his market jumps again. Yes, there’s a reason the Steelers were willing to part with Pickens at the age of 24 despite his talent. He can be mercurial and temperamental at times. However, Pittsburgh didn’t have stability at quarterback in Pickens’ three-year career, rotating from Mitchell Trubisky (seven starts) to Kenny Pickett (24 starts) to Mason Rudolph (three starts) to Justin Fields (six starts) to Russell Wilson (11 starts). In Prescott, Pickens has a passer who was the 2023 NFL MVP runner-up the last time he completed a season healthy just two seasons ago. The Cowboys should get the best of Pickens in 2025 given the upcoming season is the last of his rookie deal.

A saving grace of this move by Jones is that Dallas really can’t lose this transaction. Should Pickens ball out and garner a long-term extension, that’s a significant victory. If he can’t jell with Prescott, Lamb and first-year head coach Brian Schottenheimer in 2025, he can walk in free agency, and the Cowboys will likely recoup a third-round pick, the acquisition cost sent to the Steelers, thanks to the league’s collective bargaining agreement regarding compensatory picks. The move to go get him signals to the organization and Dallas’ fan base that Jones is serious about getting the Cowboys back to playing postseason football again ASAP, thus defeating perhaps any professional sports team’s biggest opponent: apathy.