Cowboys Could Pivot to NFL’s Biggest Deep Threat if Pickens Leaves
George Pickens arrived in Dallas with loads of potential and a lot of questions surrounding his game. For the most part, he has silenced all doubters with a season that will be the best of his four-year career if he continues on the same trajectory.
On the field, Pickens has been everything the Cowboys hoped for. Through Week 10, he has 49 catches for 764 yards and six touchdowns, ranking fourth in the league in receiving yards while averaging 15.6 yards per catch.
The club sent a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth to the Pittsburgh Steelers for Pickens and a 2027 sixth, and it’s fair to say he has repaid them. This is the final year of his rookie deal, though, and he’s set to hit free agency in March of 2026.
There’s little doubt the Cowboys want him back — ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler reported on November 12 that Dallas could use the franchise tag on Pickens if a long term extension isn’t reached, so it looks like he’s probably sticking around. If something happens and the Cowboys decide to move on, though, they could have a very attractive option in free agency.
Dallas Cowboys Could Target Colts WR Alec Pierce If They Lose George Pickens
GettyThe Dallas Cowboys could potentially target WR Alec Pierce of the Indianapolis Colts in 2026 free agency if they don’t re-sign George Pickens.
K.D. Drummond of Cowboys Wire listed several pending free agents who “could be targets” for the Cowboys next offseason, and Indianapolis Colts receiver Alec Pierce was among the most intriguing.
“If the Cowboys don’t bring back Pickens, Pierce is looking like a beautiful consolation prize,” Drummond wrote. “He’s excelling now that he has a competent QB throwing him the ball (can anyone believe that’s being said about Daniel Jones?) and his deep-threat ability mirrors Pickens’ impact on the Dallas offense.”
Like Pickens, Pierce was a 2022 second-rounder, taken 53rd overall by the Colts out of Cincinnati. At 6-foot-3 and 211 pounds, he offers similar size but a subtly different game. Pierce is more of a deep-ball threat, and he’s an asset more for his explosiveness than he is for his production and volume.
With the likelihood the team will re-sign quarterback Daniel Jones to a hefty deal, the chances of the Colts also being able to keep Pierce around may not be good.
A Closer Look at Pierce’s Game
Pierce’s career stats haven’t been as impressive as Pickens’ have. Through Week 10 of the 2025 season, he has 138 catches for 2,516 yards and 12 touchdowns, a robust 18.5 yards per reception over four years in Indianapolis.
He led the NFL with 22.3 yards per catch in 2024, turning 37 receptions into 824 yards and seven scores. This year has been more of the same. He’s hauled in 28 passes for 585 yards and one touchdown, again leading the league in yards per grab (20.9 ypc).
Based on Pickens’ elite production thus far in Dallas coupled with his tangible on-field chemistry with QB Dak Prescott, it’s difficult to picture Cowboys owner Jerry Jones letting the talented young receiver get away. But as we’ve learned over the past year, anything is possible where Jones is concerned. If things with Pickens don’t work out, Pierce would be a solid big-play option for Prescott, no doubt.
We’ll see how the rest of the season plays out first.
49ers' Brandon Aiyuk Return Timeline Uncertain as Injury Recovery Continues
Despite playing most of the season without several star players including quarterback Brock Purdy, tight end George Kittle, receiver Ricky Pearsall, and defensive end Nick Bosa, the San Francisco 49ers have a respectable 6-4 record and are just one game behind the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks for the NFC West division lead.
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The injury-ravaged 49ers have been hit particularly hard on offense with injuries to two QBs, a running back, five different WRs, a tight end, and two offensive linemen.
Aside from losing Bosa and All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner to season-ending injuries, the roughest part of the 49ers’ season just may be the fact that WR Brandon Aiyuk still hasn’t played a snap.
The 27-year-old is still recovering from torn ACL and MCL injuries suffered in Week 7 of last season against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Aiyuk’s Return Timeline Takes a Hit
49ers general manager John Lynch initially told reporters during the preseason that he expected Aiyuk to be back by Week 7 of the regular season. But days before the team’s Week 11 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals, Lynch dropped a not-so-promising update on the All-Pro wideout.
“That’s not the intention, the intention is to get Brandon back,” Lynch told KNBR when asked if this season would be a redshirt year for Aiyuk. “We’re not there yet, we just got to get him to a place where we’re comfortable opening that window, and see if he can make it back on the field. That is the intention. But we’ll see, no absolutes there.”
Aiyuk has been practicing with the team for weeks, but he reportedly needed more time than the team initially believed for his ACL to fully heal.
When healthy, Aiyuk is arguably one of the NFL’s 10 best wide receivers. He posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2022 and 2023, totaling 75 or more catches and seven or more touchdowns both years.
But without the dynamic receiver, the 49ers’ WR corps leaves much to be desired.
Pearsall, the team’s first-round pick last season, has missed six games due to injuries and logged just 20 catches for 327 yards.
The WR-by-Committee Approach Isn’t Working
Though the 49ers lead the NFL in receptions (249) and receiving yards (2,737), the bulk of that production has come from running backs and tight ends.
In fact, 60% of San Francisco’s receptions and 49% of its receiving yards have come from Christian McCaffrey, Kittle, Jake Tonges, Kyle Juszczyk, Luke Farrell, and Brian Robinson Jr. — further emphasizing Aiyuk’s importance to the passing game.
McCaffrey, a running back, leads the team in every receiving category including receptions (69), targets (90), receiving yards (692), and touchdowns (4). The 49ers’ leading WR is Kendrick Bourne (31 catches, 482 yards), and he didn’t join the team until Week 2.
Aside from McCaffrey, the 49ers don’t have a receiver who ranks in the top 35 in the NFL in receiving yards or the top 60 in receptions.
