Edit: whoops, I misread your post. 1/4" is quite a bit, since I believe the pickup is only 1/2" from the bottom of the pan. It may need to come off, so you can straighten out the bottom of the pan.
If you start the engine and see if you have oil pressure. Then rev it up to max rpm and see if you have oil pressure. If you don't lose oil pressure, then you are fine.