The Pittsburgh Steelers are off to a great start to their season, winning both of their games and holding the opposition to a combined 16 points.
The vibes are good in Pittsburgh, but it feels as if their hot start is unsustainable. Yes, their defense is as legit as any in the NFL. Their offense, though? That has continued to be a problem even with a completely revamped quarterback room.
Justin Fields has led Pittsburgh to a total of 31 points in two games. Their defense has been good enough to lead them to wins, but it's tough to expect them to win much averaging a shade over 15 points per game.
The biggest reason Pittsburgh has struggled offensively has to do with a lack of talent on that side of the field. Fields has talent, but he has been far from stellar since being selected in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
Skill position player-wise, the Steelers are extremely thin outside of George Pickens, their No. 1 receiver. Despite that talent gap, head coach Mike Tomlin still does not appear to fully trust him based on how he is being used.
Pickens had a strong showing in Week 1, recording six receptions for 85 yards in their win, but he slowed down substantially in Week 2, recording two receptions for 29 yards. Pittsburgh won both games so it isn't a huge deal, but the amount of time Pickens has been seeing on the field suggests a lack of trust.
In Week 2, Pickens was on the field for 77 percent of Pittsburgh's offensive snaps. Van Jefferson, the team's No. 2 receiver, was on the field for 82 percent of their offensive snaps. In Week 1, Pickens was on the field for 68 percent of their offensive snaps compared to Jefferson's 72 percent.
From a talent perspective, this isn't close. Pickens had 1,140 receiving yards last season. Jefferson had a total of 578 receiving yards in 2022 and 2023 combined. Despite the massive gap, Jefferson has been on the field more than Pickens in both games. Why exactly is that?
The Steelers have been ahead in the second half in both of their games so focusing on the run makes sense, but it's not as if Pickens is incapable of blocking. Plus, if the clear No. 1 target is off the field, isn't it very likely that the Steelers will be running the ball?
It's hard to explain why Jefferson has seen more run than Pickens, but based on how things have gone for Pittsburgh offensively, the hope is that this trend stops sooner rather than later. What's pretty clear as of now, though, is that Mike Tomlin does not trust Pickens as much as he probably should.
