On May 7, 2025, Pittsburgh Steelers fans were shocked to learn that wide receiver George Pickens was traded to the Dallas Cowboys. Pickens is a phenomenal talent, but his inconsistent effort and questionable media responses gave the Steelers' coaching staff headaches before he was ultimately sent packing.
But since forcing his way out of Pittsburgh and landing in Dallas, Pickens seems to be doing everything right... and Steelers fans have a reason to be frustrated.
As Pickens seeks a new contract extension, many expected Pickens to 'hold-in' as he awaits a massive new deal. While Steelers fans who witnessed his antics wouldn't have batted an eye at this, Pickens is making a different choice—a wiser choice.
Though Pickens did not attend voluntary OTAs, on the advice of his agent, he is in Dallas and taking the field for mandatory minicamp. The 25-year-old receiver took the field with teammates for walkthroughs and individual workouts. The team held him out of 11-on-11 drills as they look to ramp up his participation slowly.
Not only did he make a wise decision by taking the field, but Pickens also offered the perfect response when speaking to the media, per Jon Machota of The Athletic.
“What’s important to me is winning. Like I said from the beginning, I always wanna bring a Super Bowl to a group of guys that never had that feeling. That’s really the most important part to me.”
Now, Steelers fans have the right to question why their team couldn't get Pickens to buy in as he has with the Cowboys.
Pittsburgh Steelers fans are allowed to be frustrated with George Pickens' new attitude with the Dallas Cowboys
It's not that the Steelers fanbase wanted to see Pickens fail after leaving the team; we hope the young man can succeed and continue to put together highlight reel catches. But it's frustrating that the Steelers couldn't get the same consistently positive attitude out of Pickens when he was in Pittsburgh.
The talent was never in question. At 6'3'' and 195 pounds with a massive catch radius and unmatched acrobatic ability with the ball in the air, the sky was always the limit for Pickens. However, relationships had gotten so tense that the Steelers were forced to trade an uber-talented 24-year-old before he could even play out the last year of his rookie contract.
Since then, Pickens seems to have changed his attitude, and we have the right to ask why. Was it Mike Tomlin? Was it the quarterback situation in Pittsburgh? Was it his involvement in the passing game? We don't know.
Pickens is slated to play under the franchise tag for the Cowboys during the 2026 season, which means he will have a one-year, fully guaranteed contract worth $27.3 million. That's hard to complain about.
But as he awaits a new deal from the Cowboys, Pickens is taking the right approach and doing the right thing by showing up to minicamp and participating with his team. This comes after putting up over 1,400 yards and nine touchdowns with the Cowboys last season.
If the Pittsburgh Steelers could have gotten this attitude and mentality out of George Pickens from the beginning, there would have been no reason to trade the talented receiver in the first place.
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