George Pickens Traded to Cowboys | Fantasy Football Outlooks for Steelers and Cowboys

The NFL has been pretty quiet since the draft took place, but some major news happened early on Wednesday.

The Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers made a trade. Let's take a look at the trade, then assess the fantasy players on each offense after the transaction.

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Trade Details and Player Stats

The Steelers traded George Pickens to the Cowboys. He was the only player moved in the deal.

The Steelers also sent a 2027 sixth-round pick to the Cowboys. Dallas sent Pittsburgh a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick.

Pickens has spent the first three years of his career with Pittsburgh. He played in 48 games, with last season being the only time he didn't appear in 17 games.

Pickens has caught 174 of his 293 targets for 2,841 yards and 12 touchdowns. He has 36 rushing yards and a score on eight attempts.

He had 801 yards and four scores on 52 receptions and 84 targets as a rookie in 2022. Pickens scored five times and racked up 1,140 yards on 63 grabs and 106 targets in 2023. In 14 games last season, Pickens had 900 yards and three scores on 59 catches and 103 targets.

Cowboys Fantasy Outlooks

Pickens will join a Cowboys' offense with not many established pass catchers in place.

Of course, CeeDee Lamb is the go-to pass catcher in Dallas, and that's not going to change with Pickens around. Lamb will still be a highly-drafted fantasy asset, and he should contend for the No. 1 fantasy wideout spot.

Pickens has a great chance at being the team's No. 2 option. On a team with an underwhelming running game, that should make Pickens a pretty good fantasy asset. 

Pickens won't have as high a fantasy ceiling as he did in the past, but he should still be a good weekly starting option. Outside of really tough matchups, Pickens is probably going to be startable all season.

Adding Pickens is going to hurt the fantasy values of receivers like Jalen Tolbert, Jonathan Mingo, Jalen Brooks, Ryan Flournoy and KaVontae Turpin. Tight ends Jake Ferguson and Luke Schoonmaker will also take a little hit.

We'll have to keep an eye on the pass catcher depth chart as training camp and the preseason unfold to see if anyone else might be worth rostering and playing in fantasy in 2025. Ferguson looks like the next best option after Lamb and Pickens, and that might be the end of the weekly contributors for the Cowboys.

Adding Pickens is a nice fantasy boost for quarterback Dak Prescott. Having talented wide receivers to throw to is never a bad thing. It's not going to turn Prescott into an elite fantasy option, but it might help him consistently deliver at least average fantasy totals.

The Cowboys' running game won't be all that affected by the addition of Pickens. Javonte Williams looks to be the backfield leader for now, although rookies Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah and veteran Miles Sanders might be pretty involved too.

Steelers Fantasy Outlooks

Losing Pickens is going to hurt the Steelers' offense, even if he was a distraction with his antics.

DK Metcalf was already the top receiver on the team, and now his fantasy ceiling is a bit higher. He's probably in a better situation going into 2025 than he was with the Seahawks in 2024.

Calvin Austin III and Robert Woods are the other likely starters alongside Metcalf. Roman Wilson, Ben Skowronek and Scotty Miller are likely the next in line.

Austin had some decent fantasy showings last season, and could put up decent numbers as the No. 2 behind Metcalf. Austin could be a flex option here and there.

Woods is more a veteran leader than someone to expect constant production out of. He might have some fantasy value in deeper setups.

Wilson is a guy to keep an eye on after the team used a third-round pick on him last offseason. He was injured most of his rookie season, so he'll likely be overlooked a bit. After Austin, Wilson is my best guess to be a decent fantasy wideout in Pittsburgh.

Tight end Pat Freiermuth should remain a big part of the offense, and might be the second-best fantasy pass catcher after Metcalf. He should be startable most of the season as long as the team figures out the QB position.

Speaking of the quarterback, Mason Rudolph is still the projected starter at this point. If no outside signing or trade is made, rookie Will Howard might also have a crack at the starting job.

I still think Aaron Rodgers is going to be a Steeler, which would obviously be a boost for the offense and all its pass catchers. We'll cover him in detail if/when he signs with Pittsburgh.

The running game might get more work with Pickens no longer around. Jaylen Warren and rookie Kaleb Johnson should be the most-used backs, and might both be startable depending on which direction the Steelers' offense decides to go. Kenneth Gainwell and Cordarrelle Patterson are two more veteran backs the Steelers could utilize.