When it comes to paying star players, it never pays to wait.
The Cowboys learned that lesson (again) on Monday, when the market for the receiver position moved from $40 million per year to $42.15 million per year, thanks to the new contract signed by Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
That’s particularly relevant to Cowboys receiver George Pickens, whose path to free agency was blocked by the franchise tag. He’ll make $27.298 million without a long-term contract. And his desire to get a long-term deal will only become stronger, now that two other receivers have made it to the $40 million threshold.
The Cowboys and Pickens have until July 15 to get a multi-year deal signed. There has been no indication that any negotiations have begun. The Cowboys will likely push it to the deadline, while also lamenting Pickens’s absence from the offseason program.
Regardless, the price will keep going up. The Rams likely will be signing receiver Puka Nacua to a new deal, sooner than later. He’ll quite possibly be the next player to get to $40 million per year. That will make Pickens even more determined to get there.
No, delays never help get deals done. Especially since the Cowboys may have been able to get Pickens signed during the 2025 season for something less than $40 million per year.
Still, it’s on brand. They take too long to pay their stars. They did it with Dak Prescott. They did it with Ezekiel Elliott. They did it with CeeDee Lamb. They did it with Micah Parsons — and it blew up on them.
What will happen with Pickens? That’s largely up to the Cowboys. But the market is the market, and the market has once again changed. If the Cowboys truly want to keep him, they need to dig deep. If they keep dragging their feet, they’ll eventually need to dig ever deeper.
The Cowboys went into the offseason with the goal of improving their defense and one of the players they’ve brought in believes the team has taken the right steps to start that process.
Safety Jalen Thompson signed with the team as a free agent this month and said his prior relationship with secondary coach Ryan Smith from the Cardinals played a role in his decision to sign with Dallas. Smith will be working with the team’s new defensive coordinator Christian Parker, who has helped oversee an effort that has resulted in the additions of Thompson, defensive end Rashan Gary, safety P.J. Locke and cornerback Cobie Durant.
“I just feel like we have all the right pieces,” Thompson said, via Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “[Parker] puts the players in the right places. Players that have worked under him have been All-Pros. He brings that versatility to the defense where he puts guys in different places that do the right thing for the team. We got all the right pieces. We’re ready to go. I’m excited to get going with the guys and meet the others as well and create our identity this year as a defense. We got to show that it’s not the same defense as last year.”
Thompson mentioned Parker’s versatility and the safety has shown plenty of it himself by lining up deep, in the box, in the slot and elsewhere over the course of his NFL career. He said he’s open to playing “wherever they need me” on a Cowboys defense that needs to make a major step forward in 2026.
The Steelers are still waiting for word on quarterback Aaron Rodgers’s plans for the 2026 season, but they have reportedly moved to add another of head coach Mike McCarthy’s former charges to the roster.
Longtime Steelers reporter Mark Kaboly reports that they have agreed to sign offensive lineman Brock Hoffman.
Hoffman was not tendered by the Cowboys as a restricted free agent earlier this year. He joined the Cowboys in 2022 and played under McCarthy until the coach parted ways with the team after the 2024 season.
Hoffman played 54 games over four seasons in Dallas, including every game over the last three seasons. He started 16 of those contests.
The Lions have added some defensive depth.
Detroit announced on Friday that the club has signed lineman Payton Turner.
Turner, 27, was with the Cowboys last season. But he missed the year after being placed on injured reserve in late August after suffering a rib injury.
A former first-round pick, Turner spent his first four seasons with New Orleans. His most productive year was in 2024, when he appeared in 16 games and recorded 21 total tackles with 2.0 sacks.
In his 31 career contests, Turner has tallied 5.0 sacks, 11 tackles for loss, and 11 quarterback hits.
Wide receiver T.Y. Hilton has not played in an NFL game since he was with the Cowboys in 2022, so most people probably assumed that he had retired some time ago.
Hilton erased any doubts that might have been lingering on Wednesday. He formally announced his retirement in a post to X.com that thanked the Colts, the Cowboys, fans who supported him, his teammates and his family.
The Colts drafted Hilton in the third round in 2012 and he spent 10 years with the team. Hilton posted at least 1,000 receiving yards in five of those seasons and led the league in receiving yards during the 2016 season. He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection during his time in Indianapolis and closed out his time with the team with the third-most catches and receiving yards in franchise history.
Hilton had 631 catches for 9,691 yards and 53 touchdowns while with the Colts.
Hilton went unsigned for most of the 2022 season, but played three games for Dallas late in the season. His first catch for the team went for 52 yards and he finished the year with seven receptions for 121 yards.
