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Cowboys place nonexclusive franchise tag on WR George Pickens – Todd Archer, ESPN
The Cowboys now have a placeholder to get a long-term deal done with George Pickens.
FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys did what they were long expected to Friday, placing the franchise tag on wide receiver George Pickens to secure his rights at least through 2026.
The NFL set the 2026 salary cap at $301.2 million on Friday, making Pickens’ salary guarantee $27.298 million for next season if he chooses to play on it. While working out a long-term deal remains a possibility, the two sides have until July 15 to get a new contract finalized or, by NFL rule, the player must play on the one-year deal or choose to hold out.
The Cowboys used the nonexclusive tag designation on Pickens, sources told ESPN, which allows him to talk to other teams when free agency begins March 11. Should Pickens sign an offer sheet with another team, the Cowboys will have the right to match the offer or decline to do so and receive two first-round draft picks as compensation.
The Cowboys met with Pickens’ representatives Thursday at the NFL scouting combine. The talks were described as more general than in-depth.
Schotty on Aubrey contract talks: ‘He wants to be here. We want him here’ – Patrik Walker, DallasCowboys.com
Will Brandon Aubrey play in Dallas in 2026?
INDIANAPOLIS — George Pickens and the franchise tag is certainly the prevailing headline for the Dallas Cowboys from the 2026 NFL Combine, but it’s not the only one. Another also involves contract negotiations, but with All-Pro kicker Brandon Aubrey, who is also set to hit free agency — should the Cowboys allow it.
The thing is, they won’t, because Aubrey is a restricted free agent (Pickens is unrestricted) and, as the two sides will continue negotiations heading into the beginning of March. Speaking from the NFL Combine, head coach Brian Schottenheimer had an exclusive Q&A with DallasCowboys.com that touched on the temperature of those talks.
“When you build the right culture here, the players want to stay,” he said of Aubrey. “Players want to be here. And so, as the negotiation and the business side of it happens, the good thing for me, and the good thing for us — the Cowboys Organization — is knowing that Brandon doesn’t want to go anywhere.”
The feeling is mutual from the team’s standpoint.
When Stephen Jones spoke from the very same NFL Combine a few days prior, he made it clear talks are well underway, and have been for a while now, but the work continues because Dallas wants what is arguably the league’s best kicker to stick around for the long haul.
Cowboys defensive coordinator’s first project? Second-year corner Shavon Revel – Joseph Hoyt, Dallas Morning News
Year two is extremely critical for the development of Shavon Revel.
INDIANAPOLIS — Broncos star cornerback Pat Surtain, the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year, gave credit to new Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker for a large part of his initial NFL development. Eagles cornerback Cooper DeJean recently said Parker was instrumental in helping him and Quinyon Mitchell go from rookies in 2024 to instrumental pieces of Philadelphia’s Super Bowl run.
All three were successful projects that helped launch Parker from a position coach to a 34-year-old defensive coordinator for the Cowboys.
It begs the question: Who will his next project be? Could it be a first-round pick like LSU’s Mansoor Delane, or the Tennessee tandem of Jermod McCoy or Colton Hood?
Maybe the answer is already on the roster.
“I think he’s got one on the team he loves in [Shavon] Revel,” Cowboys co-owner Stephen Jones said from the NFL scouting combine this week.
It’s a name the Cowboys keep bringing up, indicating their high hopes for the second-year corner.
Revel’s rookie season was an interesting one. He didn’t practice with the team until October. He didn’t make his NFL debut until mid-November. Revel showed some flashes, but also some rookie struggles, especially when it came to zone coverage for a corner who thrived at East Carolina in press-man coverage situations.
Stephen Jones: George Pickens ‘very fired up’ about remaining a Cowboy after tag – Todd Brock, Cowboys Wire
George Pickens and the Cowboys appear to be on the same page.
The Cowboys using the franchise tag on wide receiver George Pickens didn’t come as a surprise when it was announced on Friday, although the revelation that it’s the “non-exclusive” variety caught more than a few observers off-guard.
The exact price of that tag has also been settled, with the league officially setting the 2026 salary cap. What was once projected to be a $28.8 franchise tag for locking down a wide receiver for a year is now slightly less, at $27.3 million.
But both the owner who will be stroking that check and the first-time Pro Bowler who will be on the receiving end of it are apparently thrilled nonetheless.
“Jerry [Jones] had a great visit with him yesterday,” Cowboys COO Stephen Jones said Friday on The Rich Eisen Show, relaying a conversation that had taken place between the two on Thursday. “He was fired up that he wasn’t going to be going anywhere. We understand, too: economically, guys probably would prefer a long-term deal. But the franchise tag, economically, is not bad either. But he was very fired up about his future with us. We felt like he wanted to be in Dallas; he certainly said that to Jerry yesterday. Jerry just said he was on cloud nine that he was going to be a Cowboy again.”
Position changes for Marist Liufau, Donovan Ezeiruaku hint at Cowboys scheme changes – David Howman, Blogging The Boys
Things will look quite differently for the Cowboys defensively under Christian Parker.
Christian Parker has been hard at work since taking over as the Cowboys defensive coordinator, finalizing his staff just earlier this week. Now, he’s moving onto the next stage: reshaping the defensive roster. Thursday brought a report that Dallas is expected to pursue Eagles free agent linebacker Nakobe Dean, but head coach Brian Schottenheimer also confirmed position changes for both Marist Liufau and Donovan Ezeiruaku.
The move is hardly surprising for Ezeiruaku, as the outside linebackers in a 3-4 defense are typically going to be more oriented towards edge rushing. For example, last year the Eagles listed Jaelan Phillips, Nolan Smith, and Jalyx Hunt as outside linebackers even though they did effectively the same thing that Cowboys defensive ends Jadeveon Clowney, James Houston, and Ezeiruaku himself did in 2025.
The surprising move, though, was for Liufau.
The former Notre Dame linebacker wasn’t exactly known for his pass rushing skills coming out of college. He had 40 total pressures and eight sacks during his entire college career; there were 49 EDGEs with more pressures last year, and 39 had 8+ sacks.
Liufau was more known for his run defense at Notre Dame, specifically his hard-hitting play style. Dane Brugler of The Athletic had this to say at the time:
After a broken ankle sidelined him for the 2021 season, he ripped off 25 straight starts to finish his Irish career and was often the most energetic player on the field. With his closing burst and physicality, Liufau plays through contact well and punches above his weight class when working downhill. His explosive energy helps him cover a lot of ground in a hurry, although he needs to play with better anticipation and control to be a playmaker in coverage and as a tackler.
Overall, Liufau has intriguing traits with his length, burst and violence, but he must improve his play instincts to balance out his relentless play style. He should shine as a “core four” special teamer in the NFL while he gets coached up for a chance at meaningful defensive snaps (similar to the Las Vegas Raiders’ Divine Deablo).