Steelers' George Pickens A Victim Of Not Having A Leader Like Hines Ward In Locker Room

The Pittsburgh Steelers have a lot of organizational issues to address over the course of the upcoming 2025 offseason. The Steelers need to make changes on both sides of the ball when it comes to the coaching staff, as well as re-think the overall structure of the roster. Pittsburgh's offense has been out-dated and unproductive for some time now, but George Pickens has proven to be a generational talent and one of the few bright spots despite the concerns surrounding his behavior.  

Bryant McFadden, a former cornerback who won two Super Bowls with the Steelers, was recently on Pittsburgh's 93.7 The Fan and was asked about what the team should do with Pickens, who just finished his third season and is going to be looking for a contract extension. McFadden first pointed out what every NFL figure says when they first talk about Pickens, which is that the team needs to find a way for him to become a professional. 

McFadden went back to his playing days and highlighted each of the young, talented wide receivers that the Steelers had on those rosters. Antwaan Randle El, Plaxico Burress, Santonio Holmes, Antonio Brown and Emmanuel Sanders were all players that had the privilege and opportunity to learn from the great Hines Ward, McFadden pointed out. 

Pickens, however, was not given much to learn from. A large portion of NFL analysts have begun to question if Pickens is even willing to learn and grow as a player on and off of the field. 

"I can talk about what my cousin, Patrick Peterson, said about George Pickens when he was there," McFadden said on Friday. "He had real good dialogue with George Pickens, and he said George Pickens was the person that wanted to learn. All I know is this - when he came into the locker room, you talked about how he had to learn from Diontae Johnson, I don't know if that was the person you want George Pickens to learn from."

Diontae Johnson, who Pittsburgh decided to trade in the very beginning of the 2024 offseason, did not do a good job of teaching Pickens how to be a professional. In fact, Johnson has been jumping ships from team to team ever since he was traded by the Steelers, who drafted him. 

"So, when you talk about being successful, we were successful because we had leadership that young players came into the locker room, they instantly respect it. The Steelers have to get back to that way, because that was a foundation that the house was built on, even going back to the seventies and eighties. To your point, George Pickens, I understand fans are overly critical of him, but he came into the game needing to have guidance. Who guided him in his room? If you're telling me that Diontae Johnson guided him, then good luck."

Though the Steelers have been remembered as having some of the most legendary wide receivers of all time, it hasn't been that way in the last decade or so. Pittsburgh has dealt with many immature personalities in recent years, and it's been a huge problem for the organization. 

Pickens had a tough year with the NFL and received multiple fines for his behavior on the field. It began early in the year when Pittsburgh was hosting the Dallas Cowboys for Sunday Night Football and Pickens wrote an explicit message on his eye black. Pickens seems to have had a target on his back by the league since then and had many other frustrated outbursts. 

Steelers Have Big Decision Looming On Future Of George Pickens

Pickens just finished his third season in the league with Pittsburgh, which means the 2025 season will be the final year on his rookie contract. Pickens has shown he's capable of being a true number one receiving option for the Steelers, but the front office will surely consider the maturity concerns. Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin was asked about Pickens' development in his season-closing press conference, and said he still has more work to do. 

If the Steelers don't see a world where Pickens can become a veteran leader in their locker room, then it would be best if the moved on from him sooner rather than later. To McFadden's point, the Steelers need to get back to their organizational standards and find quality leaders if they want to get back to fighting for championships. What do you think about Pickens and his chances of growing as a leader?