Significant Steelers players got "fed up" with George Pickens' antics before WR's trade to Cowboys: Report

On Monday, NFL analyst Mark Kaboly revealed some major information regarding the George Pickens trade. In a social media post to X, Kaboly detailed some behind the scenes information regarding the fallout and reasoning behind the star WR Pickens being traded from the Pittsburgh Steelers to the Dallas Cowboys, including making clear that some veteran players were 'fed up' with Pickens.

"More on the Steelers trading George Pickens to Dallas:

• Significant locker room guys got fed up with Pickens' antics and quickly got turned off by him for multiple reasons, I was told.

• Some felt that it would be counterproductive to keep him around, even with his unique talent. They felt the locker room could turn toxic.

• Not many teams were interested in trading for Pickens, making it difficult for the Steelers to get market value.

• The Steelers wouldn't have traded him for anything less than a 3rd-round pick -- something that wasn't offered until after the draft.

• Not many were broken up within the organization that Pickens got traded."

The report is quite shocking and does reveal a lot about the situation prior to Pickens being traded. The trade in full saw Pickens and a 2027 sixth round pick going to Dallas in exchange for a 2026 third round pick and a 2027 fifth round pick.

Although the move was a notable one, fans and analysts alike were questioning how Pickens would handle no longer being the clear No. 1 wideout in the Steelers offense. This offseason, Pittsburgh traded for and signed wide receiver DK Metcalf to a major contract extension, something that likely would have pushed Pickens down the depth chart.

Does Pickens help the Dallas Cowboys in 2025?

Despite the report by Kaboly, it is hard to see how the Steelers are a better team without Pickens in 2025. On field behavioural issues aside, Pickens is one of the most talented and exciting players in the entire National Football League, and has performed extremely well to this point in his career with no real star QB throwing him the football.

In 2024, he had 59 receptions for 900 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns in only 14 games. Now a member of the Cowboys, Pickens and WR CeeDee Lamb have the talent and ability to become one of the best WR duos in the NFL in 2025.