After his retirement from the AFL in 2007 he continued playing semi-professionally, including some time with the Port Adelaide Magpies in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).

In the last days of his playing career with North Melbourne, he famously broke the collarbone of Geelong's Darren Milburn in a hard clash.

[6] On 5 May 2007, Pickett laid a strong tackle on Port Adelaide's Kane Cornes, which left him concussed and taken from the ground on a stretcher.

After round 6 in 2007, the Demons suspended Pickett to a minimum of four weeks at the Sandringham Football Club for the official reason of failing to attend a game.

Unofficially, there were club concerns surrounding Pickett's weight and pre-season work ethic and him turning up to training under the influence of alcohol.

[7] Despite drawing criticism late in his career for being increasingly overweight and slow, however he maintained an impact in matches, continuing to score goals and make game turning plays.

Byron Pickett announced his last game of football on Sunday 2 September, in the match against Carlton, retiring along with Demons teammates Clint Bizzell and Nathan Brown.

In 2005 he received a 6-week suspension for a clash which accidentally knocked out James Begley in a pre-season match with both players chasing for the ball.

The incident sparked controversy and in response many football commentators, including premiership player Robert Walls called to ban the bump.

He received a 2-week suspension for a hip-and-shoulder on Carlton's Simon Wiggins as he completed a mark, after slowing down and pulling up to reduce the collision.