Going into the the 2023 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense has a chance to take a big step forward. After a few seasons of being a below average to bad unit, Pittsburgh really has a chance to ascend on the backs of Year Two Kenny Pickett and a lot of great weapons. Some of the Steelers’ best weapons are in the wide receiver room, like Diontae Johnson and George Pickens, but for the offense to take that next step they need more diversity in their route trees, especially when it comes to Pickens.
Matt Harmon of his Reception Perception show said that Pickens needs to have his route tree expanded if the Steelers offense is going to take that next step and come out of the basement of the league.
“We gotta get George Pickens on more routes than just curls and go’s.” Harmon said. “I mean we have to even, he’s obviously not there like Diontae is as a route runner, but it’s gotta happen for this offense to take a step. And by the way, I think if it does, like I think there’s a lot to like about this offense, even if I don’t know what Kenny Pickett’s ceiling is.”
Pickens had a bunch of success on go routes thanks to his sure hands, but he was mostly relegated to running routes hugging the sideline which limited his impact in games. Harmon charted Pickens’ routes this season on over 30% of his routes he ran go routes. On almost 20% he ran a curl route meaning that Pickens ran only two routes over 50% of the time last season.
While Pickens has great hands, it’s harder to be successful when cornerbacks know what routes you’re running. Pickens isn’t the best separator but he is certainly capable of running more than two routes for 50% of the game as shown by his route running success percentage.
One of the main criticisms of offensive coordinator Matt Canada’s offense is that it is too predictable and this give credence to it. If Canada can vary up what Pickens running it can keep defenses on their toes and get him more touches. Steelers Depot’s Joe Clark touched on how good of hands Pickens has as he caught 61.9% of the passes thrown to him last season.
The best way to get him the ball is to not send him on only two routes for the majority of games in which cornerbacks can sit on. As shown with the stats, Pickens will likely come down with a catch if he’s thrown the ball. Increasing his volume will be key in maximizing his productivity.
Pittsburgh’s offense this year will be predicated on running the football, but the team has a chance to increase the number of explosive plays this year. The best way to do that is through the passing game, but the route tree for everyone needs to be more varied. If Canada can create a more unpredictable offense and passing game, the Steelers can take off.
