George Pickens traded to Dallas: The Dynasty Fantasy Football Impact
In 2022, the Steelers used a second round pick on Georgia wide receiver George Pickens. The results they got were about as mixed as possible as Pickens showed real talent on the field, posting 174 catches for 2,841 yards and 12 total touchdowns in his three seasons in Pittsburgh. However, his time in Steel City was also littered with strange bouts of inefficiency and issues with maturity that included untimely unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and arriving late for team functions. In the end, this relationship just didn’t last and the Steelers decided to move on after acquiring DK Metcalf and protecting themselves in the process. Today, they traded the mercurial wideout to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for a 2026 third round pick and a 2027 fifth rounder. The move creates a ripple effect in terms of dynasty league values, so let’s explore the players affected.
George Pickens, WR DAL
Despite Pickens saying he wanted to stay in Pittsburgh and the Steelers also saying they were fine keeping him, this marriage had simply run its course. Pickens will slide into the Cowboys offense as the clear WR2 next to CeeDee Lamb and should find it possible to post similar seasons as he has in the past with close to 60 catches, 1,000 yards and a handful of touchdowns as long as he stays engaged, which has always been a bit of a challenge.
There’s an age old question we’ve been asked for years – is it better for a receiver to be a second option on a really good offense or the first option on a bad one? We may just find out as it’s hard to look at the Dallas offense led by Dak Prescott and compare it to a run-first Pittsburgh offense led by “fill in the blank” as being superior. The bigger question is going to be that of engagement and maturity with Pickens. How is he going to handle not being the focal point of the offense? While he should have little trouble beating out players like Jalen Tolbert and Jonathan Mingo for the WR2 spot, he has no chance of supplanting CeeDee Lamb.
The Cowboys are already saying they want Pickens to play out his rookie contract, so he’s essentially now on a one-year prove it deal. He should be motivated to perform and if he does, expect him to stay in Dallas on a new deal eventually as they did give up some decent capital to get him. His ADP could drop a touch, but it should be relatively stable with the move and some added motivation.
CeeDee Lamb, WR DAL
After a ridiculous 135/1,749/12 season in 2023. Lamb fell back to Earth a bit last year with 101 catches for 1,194 yards and six scores in 15 games. While that was moderately disappointing, his 2023 season was never going to be truly sustainable. The addition of Pickens really has no impact on him moving forward. Some might say his targets will decrease while others could look at things and say Pickens could free him up by taking away some attention. In the end, those things probably balance out and Lamb will be the unquestioned focal point of the offense. If you have a dynasty manager in your league who somehow thinks otherwise, pounce on it.
Dak Prescott, QB DAL
Prescott is coming off another season where he dealt with an injury and has now only played one of three full seasons since 2022. His health is the biggest concern at this point. In the end, Prescott has proven to be a very good quarterback in reality and fantasy, but not a true difference maker in either. The addition of Pickens certainly won’t hurt as he’ll now have two very viable receivers to throw to. We keep waiting for the big chain of dominant seasons for Prescott, but now at age 31, it may not really happen. Regardless, this move certainly helps him and keeps him squarely in the low-end QB1 conversation.
Other Cowboys Receivers
The Cowboys really don’t have much in the cupboard. Along with the aforementioned Tolbert and Mingo, the rest of the depth chart includes KaVontae Turpin, Ryan Flournoy, Parris Campbell, and Jalen Brooks. You could have made a case for Turpin being on a dynasty roster, but this move likely keeps him as a full-time return specialist. It may also be time to just give up the good fight on players like Campbell, Brooks, and Mingo.
DK Metcalf, WR PIT
Well, here we go. The Steelers have invested heavily in Metcalf and signed him to a monster deal. He now has everything he wants in terms of both money and responsibility. Well, almost everything. We still don’t know who’s going to throw him the ball. In the end, this move shouldn’t affect him much – he was going to be the WR1 already and now there may some drama he’s avoided.
Roman Wilson, WR PIT
If there’s a winner here, it very well may be Wilson, who had a rookie season to forget as he dealt with injuries and barely saw the field. The Steelers are reportedly very high on him and think he can be a big addition to their receiving corps this season. He could very well enter the season as their WR2 and savvy dynasty managers should target him as a “throw in” as part of a bigger deal, disguising a real interest in a player who could break out in year two.
Calvin Austin and Robert Woods, WRs PIT
It’s been a while since Woods was relevant and while he may have more opportunities moving forward, it’s hard to justify a roster spot for him at the moment. As for Austin, he’s had his chances over the last couple of seasons. While we’ve seen flashes, he’s hard to trust. Austin gets a little boost here, but he’s getting to the point of roster clogger status here and dynasty managers are going to need to see something early in the season to justify hanging on much longer.
Other Steelers Receivers
This group consists of players like Scotty Miller and Ben Skowronek. You can probably move along.
Mason Rudolph, QB PIT
At this point in time, Rudolph is slated to be the starter. However, the Steelers are still courting Aaron Rodgers, so that saga has to end before we cast any kind of prediction here. As it stands, losing Pickens wouldn’t help.
Aaron Rodgers, QB FA
There are rumors swirling now that indicate Rodgers remains interested in Pittsburgh, but wants to wait until after the schedule is finalized so the league doesn’t schedule Pittsburgh for too many primetime games on a shortened week. If that’s true, it’s clear his confidence is still there! Regardless, Rodgers would walk into a situation with a team that wants to run the ball first, limiting his upside anyway. Stay tuned.
Ken is on Twitter at DLF_KenK
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