George Pickens and his work, or rather lack of work on the football field, have dominated the sports new cycle in Pittsburgh this week.
He’s far and ahead the biggest story in Pittsburgh this week, which is really saying something over on the North Shore, the Pirates officially re-signed Andrew McCutchen.
The crux of the issue surrounding Pickens was his nonchalant effort on a Jaylen Warren run near the goal line. His lack of blocking to potentially get Warren in the endzone for a touchdown.
When asked about it Tuesday, Pickens claimed that he was trying to avoid injury.
“I was just trying to prevent the Tank Dell situation, the same thing that happened to (him),” Pickens said. “I ain’t want to get an injury. When you stay on the block too low, you can get ran up on very easily.”
If you’re unaware, Tank Dell, wide receiver for the Houston Texans, was injured by getting rolled up on from behind in a block a few weeks ago. The injury will keep Dell out for the rest of the season.
These situations are not really the same however. Both include blocking, but that’s about where the similarities end. Dell is right in the thick of a massive pile; Pickens is on the edge with no one behind him. You can see the play he is referring to here.
Yesterday, things only continued to escalate.
The noise surrounding Pickens prompted head coach Mike Tomlin to hold a second press conference this week, something that is incredibly rare for him to do.
Nearly every question was about Pickens, and about his character and maturity. Tomlin called Pickens a “work in progress” and said that he needs to be more mature, but stopped short of any real repercussions for his lack of effort, and proclaimed that Pickens will play Saturday.
Asked about any type of discipline that Pickens may have faced, Tomlin’s reply: “not that I’m going to discuss with you guys.”
Meanwhile, Jaylen Warren’s comments spread like wildfire.
Here’s the quote in full:
“I see where he’s coming from. It is what it is. At the end of the day, he was doing what he thought was best for him. Some people play the game differently. If I was in that position I would have blocked for him. But we play differently, so.”
I want to break this down into two parts.
Part One: Warren saying “If I was in that position, I would have blocked for him,” was the main takeaway people had from this quote, understandably so. I can fully believe Warren when he says that, because there is tons of tape of him doing whatever he can to block.
That’s just who Jaylen Warren is.
He’s busted his butt from day one to make this team as an undrafted free agent. He’s work tirelessly day in and day out not only to secure his spot, but to continue to grow as a player as well.
He absolutely would block for Pickens, or any other teammate for that matter.
Meanwhile, his teammate, who is a first round pick based on pure athletic talent, seemingly won’t do the same for him.
If Warren had displayed that little of effort on that play, and other instances where Pickens has been very clearly dogging it, he simply wouldn’t be on the team anymore.
I get that that’s not a completely fair comparison, because I know that the politics of football in terms of draft status lends itself to Pickens being granted far more opportunities than Warren.
Despite that, it’s an awful look for Pickens still.
Part Two: Warren’s other statement, saying “he was doing what he thought was best for him,” I think actually makes Pickens look far worse.
There is a growing distain for Pickens as of late, with calls of him not being a team player, not caring about the team’s status, and not even wanting to be in Pittsburgh growing week after week.
That play was very much Pickens only caring about himself.
Listen, I get it. No one wants to get hurt, ever, for a litany of reasons.
But you have to put effort out for your team. You have to, have to, have to.
Now, with all of this controversy (which is his own doing) swirling around Pickens, Saturday’s game is put up or shut up time for him.
But he’s going to need the Steelers’ help in order to pick a side.
I’ve been clear for a long time on my stance on George Pickens: his attitude and lack of effort is a problem, but he also has every right to be upset about his lack of deployment in the offense.
For a man with as freakish athletic talent as George Pickens, it must be absolutely infuriating to be stuck on the Pittsburgh Steelers offense.
An offense plagued by Matt Canada, and haunted by his playbook even after he got the axe is what Pickens has to call home for his entire NFL career to date.
Now, combine that with the fact that Pickens is scarcely used in said offense. Since the bye week, Pickens had 30 receptions for 421 yards. He’s been targeted 50 times, but a target does not always equal 1) a catchable ball and 2) a pass beyond the line of scrimmage.
I used his stats since after the bye week for a very particular reason: that coincided with fellow wide receiver Diontae Johnson coming back from injury. After leaving with a serious hamstring injury in Week 1, Johnson missed time until returning after Week 6.
With Johnson out, Pickens was targeted 10 times twice and 33 times overall.
The Steelers game plan saw Pickens cut out of a lot of plays once Johnson returned, when in reality, they should have been utilizing both receivers at their peak.
His attitude, sideline antics, and lack of effort plays all stem from a frustration about his usage in the offense.
So the Steelers need to do one thing.
Feed him. Constantly.
People are going to read this take and think I am claiming to reward bad behavior with more targets. That is not the case.
Rather, the best way to let the Pickens situation resolve itself is by letting him control his own fate.
Give him a few fames where gets to be the star, but in exchange, he has to clean up the maturity issues, fast.
Give him a few games where he gets 10+ targets, but he better be lighting people up while blocking.
Give him a few games to let out his offense-related frustrations, but he better not be making headlines again.
Right now, the rift with Pickens can be attributed to both himself and the Steelers. As soon as Pittsburgh actually uses him the way he should be, the situation will shift entirely to his side.
If he continues to not block, not show effort, and continue to cause rifts, we can have the departure conversation that some are so eager to have.
George Pickens will make his own fate. You just have to let him first.
(Featured photo by Gene J. Puskar/AP)
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