George Pickens reportedly signing Cowboys franchise tag; what does it mean for NFL Draft?

Wide receiver George Pickens is signing his franchise tag with the Dallas Cowboys, per NFL Network.

The tag is valued at $27.3 million this season. The Cowboys officially tagged Pickens in March, with a July 15 deadline to sign him to a long-term deal.

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That isn’t expected to happen, however, per Cowboys team owner and general manager Jerry Jones and executive vice president and CEO Stephen Jones. They told media on Wednesday that they won’t negotiate a long-term deal with Pickens before the deadline, despite saying they had “long-term plans” for him earlier this offseason.

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The reasons for halting negotiations, Stephen Jones said, were twofold: They’re already paying top-of-market money to quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, and Pickens has only had one season with the Cowboys so far.

What a season it was, however. Pickens led the Cowboys with 93 catches for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns playing opposite Lamb, and Dallas had one of the NFL’s best offenses.

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Signing the franchise tag does open up the possibility that Pickens could be traded, now that he’s officially under contract. The Cowboys have reportedly been eyeing wide receivers this draft, and could select one with either of their two first-round picks (Nos. 12 and 20), or package those picks and trade up if they really like a prospect.

For now, Pickens is returning to the Cowboys. For how long? We’ll find out.