Cowboys may consider extension for pending FA not named George Pickens
The Dallas Cowboys have a difficult contract situation on their hands and if they don’t handle it the right way in 2026, they could find themselves parting ways with that player next season. If this premise sounds familiar, it’s for good reason. It’s the blunt nature of today’s NFL and an obstacle Dallas runs into nearly every offseason.
One might assume this is all a reference to receiver George Pickens . Pickens is coming off a breakout season in 2025 and currently sits under the shadow of a franchise tag. But the player we’re really here to discuss today is fourth-year linebacker DeMarvion Overshown .
Like Pickens, Overshown is scheduled to hit free agency after the upcoming season. Unlike Pickens, the franchise tag is not a realistic option for the front office to bide time. At $27,298,000 million, the tag is actually a good deal for receiver as skilled at Pickens. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Overshown because tag estimates at linebacker next season project to be over $30M , which is far too much to spend on an inside linebacker. So the Cowboys have a dilemma on their hands with their star linebacker, and if they don’t’ do something to address it this spring, they could find themselves in an impossible situation this winter.
Overshown’s position and personal track record make him a difficult appraisal.
On one hand Overshown is one of the most explosive natural playmakers on the team. On the other hand, he’s already suffered two major knee injuries as a professional. It stands to reason if Overshown plays up to his pre-injury standard in 2026 and stays relatively healthy in the process, he’s going to want top-of-the market compensation.
That’s going to be a tough pill to swallow for the Cowboys front office given he’s only averaged 6.3 games/season prior to 2026 and therefore comes with major reliability questions. It’s a future impasse only made worse after it was announced he changed his representation to super-agent David Mulugheta (the same agent of Micah Parsons and Pickens).
If Overshown continued the trend and misses more games, he’s still an impossible appraisal. How do the Cowboys compensate an unreliable part-time superstar? A franchise tag is probably off the table because those tag values are buoyed by edge rush rushers who classify as linebackers. He’d probably be the highest-paid inside linebacker in the NFL if that happened.
The easiest way for the Cowboys to re-sign Overshown is if he has a ho-hum year in 2026 and fails to reproduce that 2024 magic. Then again, why would the Cowboys want to re-sign an injury-prone linebacker who’s no better than a JAG (just a guy)?
Getting ahead of the issue at hand and offering Overshown a one-year deal in advance might be the best course of action.
If the Cowboys can proactively ink him to a one-year extension this summer, for something in the range of $15M, Overshown can nearly triple his career earnings and give himself another year to establish value, all while Dallas spreads the costs across the next two seasons.
Combined with a “no franchise tag” clause, Mulugheta could ensure his client upfront money now plus another shot at free agency in 2028. The Dallas front office would have to pay money upfront but they’d also have two full years to evaluate his play and health in return.
The Cowboys, while they almost always wait until the last minute to negotiate with proven stars, have a duality about them where they do tend to extend the next-tier down ahead of those deadlines-make-deals contracts. Terence Steele , Jake Ferguson and others have recently been recipients.
Some may argue Pickens deserves all the attention from the front office and worrying about Overshown is borrowing trouble from tomorrow, but in reality, it’s all due diligence. The Fallacy of Relative Privation is the act of ignoring smaller problems just because a bigger problem exists. But both problems are worth addressing, and getting ahead of Overshown’s situation now is in the best interests of the Cowboys over the long-term.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Why the Cowboys must weigh extension for LB Overshown despite injuries
