The Pittsburgh Steelers gave their fans plenty of reason for concern during the 2024 offseason, particularly with the surprising decision to trade away star wide receiver Diontae Johnson. This move raised many questions about the team's wide receiver production, with George Pickens left as the sole star in the receiving corps.
Through four games, Pickens has stepped up. He’s caught 20 passes for 284 yards, averaging 14.2 yards per catch. While his numbers aren’t record-breaking and may not be quite what Pickens hoped for, he's shown tremendous growth this season. His attitude and effort have been commendable, even in defeat. After a costly fumble against the Indianapolis Colts, Pickens bounced back with resilience. He admitted his mistake and stated that he has to be better with his ball security.
He also managed to frustrate Denver Broncos star cornerback Pat Surtain II, drawing key penalties and beating him on a 51-yard deep ball from Justin Fields—though that play was called back due to a Broderick Jones holding penalty.
Initially, there were doubts about Pickens' ability to lead the receiving unit, but wide receiver analyst Matt Harmon has been thoroughly impressed by his performance. Harmon, who had been skeptical of Pickens, has now admitted that he’s fully sold on the young receiver during the podcast Football 301.
"The most impressive thing to me has actually been George Pickens," Harmon said. "You and I have had conversations about Pickens in the past, kind of being a little bit more hesitant to buy fully into the player."
Harmon, known for breaking down tape and analyzing the game, especially wide receivers, had previously been hesitant to fully buy into Pickens early in his career.
However, he's now completely sold on the young receiver. Harmon believes that Pickens has truly come into his own and is poised to keep improving as the season progresses.
"I think that he is playing the best football that I've seen him play in the NFL, and it's not even close. I think he looks more like the route runner and separator that he was in college as opposed to the first two years of his career."
Former Steelers great Ben Roethlisberger has been thrilled with what he’s seen from Pickens this season. Roethlisberger even praised Pickens' performance against the Broncos, where he had just two catches for 29 yards.
While the stats weren’t flashy, Pickens had a 51-yard catch on Surtain called back. He also had a pretty awesome touchdown that was called back. The most impressive part of his game was how he opened up the field for his teammates and frustrated Surtain, arguably the NFL's best cornerback, forcing him into critical errors throughout the game.
Steelers' George Pickens In The Middle Of A Big 2024 Season
Pickens has faced criticism in the past, particularly regarding his attitude, which led to harsh opinions from fans and analysts. However, the 2024 season feels different. Pickens has consistently impacted games, even when he’s not posting 100-yard performances.
The chemistry between Fields and Pickens is growing with each game, and there are plenty of reasons to be excited about this duo. Pickens is coming off his best performance of the season against the Colts, aside from the fumble, and he’ll look to build on that momentum Sunday night at home against the Dallas Cowboys.
Questions had surrounded Pickens about whether he could handle the role of a true wide receiver one. However, the added attention and pressure haven’t seemed to faze him. Since entering the league, Pickens has only improved with each game. There’s hope that he continues this upward trajectory and has the best season of his career.
