Right now, Jerry Jones is doing what he does best. The longer the Dallas Cowboys wait to extend George Pickens, the more harm it'll do them in the long run. And Dallas was lapped by another team signing their young wideout to an extension, as the Atlanta Falcons dropped a bag on Drake London.
The Falcons signed London to a four-year extension worth $141 million with $100 million in guaranteed money. And you just know Pickens is licking his chops seeing the $35.25 million a year price tag an objectively less talented receiver got from Atlanta, knowing he could ask for more.
The 24-year-old is lucky that he's dealing with Jerry Jones, because this is the same owner that is willing to throw around money like there's no tomorrow with extensions. But it's pretty telling that he has yet to bite in these talks, because he has a reputation for being incredibly frugal when he pleases, which is the cause of this impasse.
The Dallas Cowboys have no reason to cave into George Pickens' demands
This is slowly but surely blossoming into a nightmare for Dallas.
London is a borderline top-10 receiver in the NFL, and he's now the third-highest paid WR in the NFL in terms of annual average value behind Ja'Marr Chase and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and Pickens almost certainly has his eyes on joining the $40 million a year club.
The main differences here are that the fifth-year WR doesn't have the same character issues as Pickens and he has been held back by bad QB play. Yet, this is the sign of the times in the receiver market. As the salary cap increases, so do the demands of the players.
There should already be enough hesitance about paying Pickens more than CeeDee Lamb when No. 88 is the WR1. Several teams pay two receivers more than $25 million per year, but no team has committed more than $30 million per year to two wideouts.
Yes, the Georgia Bulldog had a breakout year in 2025, and was very evidently the missing piece for this Cowboys' offense.
However, there is a real outcome where super agent David Mulugheta demands Pickens get over $40 million annually, and there's no telling what will happen after someone like Puka Nacua signs his extension. This saga has already been drawn out enough, and the "just sign him" crowd has a leg to stand on, but paying him would severely hinder Dallas' ability to spend on other positions.
The Drake London contract undoubtedly raised the bar for young receivers seeking extensions, and it remains to be seen how the Cowboys will respond with George Pickens. What we do know is they need to proceed carefully before making a decision they might regret.
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