In a surprising turn of events Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Steelers traded George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys. After the draft passed with Pickens still in Pittsburgh, it felt like no deal for him was imminent. However, the Cowboys met the Steelers’ asking price for Pickens, putting things into motion. In return, the Steelers are receiving a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick. Analyst Craig Carton thinks the Cowboys won this deal in a landslide.
“I think it’s highway robbery,” Carton said Wednesday on FS1’s Breakfast Ball. “For all the knocks we put on the Dallas Cowboys, all of them well-earned, deservedly so, all the nonsense, this is a phenomenal deal.
“From the Dallas perspective, you gave up a couple draft picks next year and the year after that. Who knows what those guys will become, or those picks will become? And you now have as good a wide receiver duo as every team in football, outside of one or two.”
For the Cowboys, this looks like a solid move. CeeDee Lamb is their No. 1 WR, and he’s outstanding, but they didn’t have a reliable partner for him. Pickens should fill that role.
For the Steelers, this deal is complicated. Pickens is going into the final year of his current contract, and with Pittsburgh paying DK Metcalf so much money, it seemed unlikely that Pickens was also going to receive a big deal from the organization. Therefore, his time with the Steelers was likely coming to an end.
However, the timing of this trade is odd. The Steelers have been trying to build their roster to compete this year. Losing Pickens leaves them with the same problem at receiver that they had before acquiring Metcalf. In return, they got better draft capital than they would’ve gotten had they allowed Pickens to leave in free agency next year, but that doesn’t make them better right now.
Not that Pickens was a perfect player. He regularly had on-field outbursts that hurt the team. While his abilities were spectacular, sometimes, they weren’t worth dealing with the headaches that came with Pickens.
If Pickens can control his emotions, the Cowboys should be positioned to be a better team this season. Pickens and Lamb should be an electric duo. Also, they didn’t sacrifice premium draft capital. However, it might be a little early to say the Cowboys robbed the Steelers. If Dallas has a disappointing year, and Pickens leaves in free agency next year, this deal could look better for Pittsburgh.
