There were rumblings that the Pittsburgh Steelers may have been willing to trade George Pickens during the 2025 NFL Draft. It turns out this was true. Since the end of the 2024 season, Pickens' name has been in trade discussions among the NFL media. Now it sounds like the team was willing to send him packing.
On Tuesday, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported that the Dallas Cowboys were one of the teams interested in Pickens during the draft.
"George Pickens' name was tossed around in trade discussions this past week," Russini wrote on X. "The Cowboys were one of the teams that discussed bringing in the Steelers' wideout, sources tell me. But with the draft in the rearview, expect the trade buzz to cool surrounding Pickens."
It's unclear how far these trade talks had advanced. During the NFL Draft, the focus was on who the Steelers would select, not on Pickens. But we could be looking at a very different team had a George Pickens trade come to fruition during the draft.
A George Pickens trade would have been a play for the future for the Pittsburgh Steelers
Russini didn't mention what the Dallas Cowboys would have been willing to give up in a trade. Considering Pickens is entering the final year of his contract and has been a headache to deal with over his first three seasons, we were probably looking at a third- or fourth-round pick.
While some would argue Pickens is too valuable to send him packing for underwhelming draft compensation, this would have been a move with the best interest of the team's future in mind.
With DK Metcalf coming to town via trade, there isn't a chance Pickens receives a contract extension with Pittsburgh. The Steelers handed Metcalf a five-year contract at $30 million per season, and paying two wideouts in that range is something this team won't do, especially considering the issues they've had with Pickens early in his career.
Instead of letting him play out the final year of his contract in 2025, dealing with whatever questionable responses he might have to the media this season, and letting him walk away for nothing, the Steelers could have traded him to the Cowboys during the draft. In the process, they would have picked up an extra mid-round pick that they could have used to draft a player who would be on a four-year contract.
The Pittsburgh Steelers clearly weren't moved by whatever offers might have been on the table, and they are going to try to make a push for postseason success this year. A trade didn't happen during the draft, but the fact that they were entertaining the idea shows that they aren't married to George Pickens.