Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens is poised for a significant payday as a pending free agent, and Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Michael Irvin hopes Pickens will heed his advice on maximizing his earning potential.
Acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers in May 2025, Pickens had 93 catches for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns, all of which were career highs. It also led to his first Pro Bowl selection.
Irvin, who was a guest on USA Today’s “Sports Seriously” show last week, said he wants Pickens to realize the Cowboys give him the best chance to succeed and that he should stay in Dallas.
“I hope he is not a dummy,” Irvin said. “I know he’s not a dummy, but I hope he doesn’t let this guy, any guy, persuade him. George has been looking for an opportunity like he got in Dallas with a team that can get him the ball, and now he has that. It’ll be ludicrous and stupidity to say, ‘All right, now that I finally found it and I had my best year, I’m just going to get up and go.’”
Irvin also said Pickens should tell his agent, David Mulugheta, to negotiate the best deal possible with the Cowboys while making clear he has no desire to leave Dallas.
The advice is similar to what Irvin said he told former Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons last offseason before he was traded to the Green Bay Packers. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones reportedly spoke with Parsons about the parameters of a deal that Jones said the two agreed on.
Parsons says he told Jones to speak with Mulugheta and that the two did not agree on a contract. Jones did not want to work with Mulugheta on a new extension because he was steadfast of going with the original terms, leading to Parsons being traded.
“I told Micah and I’m telling George, the agent works for you, you don’t work for the agent,” Irvin said. “I don’t know what’s up with these players, but they have to start understanding the agent works for them. When I came in this league, even when I came out as a first-round draft pick, the 11th pick, I’ve always made sure the agent understood, dude, I don’t work for you. You work for me.”