One of the most annoying things about being a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan is the way the national media delivers the team’s message. America’s Team has its strengths and weaknesses, and the fact is that Dallas is regularly on national television despite a mediocre season, and every little thing about the Cowboys is blown away by comparison.
For those who are informed and have a basic understanding of how things will unfold in the coming weeks, this one may fall into the latter category. The Dallas Cowboys have a clear leverage point in contract negotiations with wide receiver George Pickens, and no one is surprised that they’ll take advantage of it.
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ESPN’s Adam Schefter “broke the news” that the Cowboys are expected to place the franchise tag on George Pickens . Shocking.
For anyone paying attention to the situation, this label is a no-brainer. After acquiring Pickens from the Pittsburgh Steelers for a third-round pick (and a third-day pick swap), Dallas got the wide receiver in return for his first All-Pro season. Pickens caught passes from a true star quarterback for the first time in his career, setting career highs in every meaningful offensive category.
He teamed up with Dak Prescott to catch 93 passes for 1,400 yards and nine touchdowns.
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But Pickens was acquired in the final year of his rookie contract and will become an unrestricted free agent if the two sides don’t renew the contract before the start of the next league year. On the open market, Pickens is expected to get the best contract in the league, which means the average salary will be more than $30 million.
However, because of the way the non-exclusive tag is calculated, Dallas can acquire Pickens’ services for just $28 million a year. The tag isn’t ideal because the one-year tender means the Cowboys can’t use the zany money accounting trick of using bonuses to reduce the cap hit in the first year of a new contract. However, it does guarantee that the Cowboys will have the right to refuse to match any contract offer if Pickens takes his talents elsewhere.
If the Cowboys choose not to match any offer, they will receive two first-round picks from the acquiring team.
As detailed in Cowboys Wire’s “5 Options for Dealing with Pickens” article two weeks ago, if the two sides don’t come together, the more likely possibility is to trade with a club for less than both players in the first round.
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But that’s only if things get testy. That’s not the case now, as the “expected franchise tag” has been that way since about December.
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: ESPN covers Cowboys, Pickens news, it’s common knowledge to most