Pittsburgh Steelers WR George Pickens was a guest on The Rich Eisen Show on the Roku Channel today, and Pickens talked about his physical attributes and athleticism. He told Eisen he’s been working on his physicality since before the draft, and he feels he’s getting respect for that athleticism now.
“It’s kind of something I’ve been working on the whole entire time,” he told Eisen. “Kind of like right before I got in the league. I just feel like I bursted on the scene now.”
Pickens has gotten a lot of hype, especially in recent days with talk show segments dedicated to deciding if he’s going to be the next elite breakout receiver. He’s impressed with ridiculous catches in practice and opened up the preseason with a 33-yard touchdown reception on his lone catch.
But he hasn’t really proven anything yet in the regular season. He had a solid rookie year, with 52 receptions for 801 yards and four touchdowns. But his production largely came on go-balls where he skied over the receiver for a contested catch, and he hasn’t yet shown that he can take the step to be an all-around receiver.
The preseason opener was a good start, in that regard, and no one’s doubting Pickens’ physical attributes. But it seems as if he’s shifted from working on his physical abilities and contested-catch traits to becoming more of that well-rounded receiver.
That’s what’s going to take him to the next level and make him a guy who can ascend to a true No. 1 wideout. The jump balls and 50-50 grabs can only take him so far, and while having that ability separates him from other wideouts, being able to use it as part of a package of things he can do will be the difference for Pickens.
We’ll see how it all translates this season. He’s talked about improving his yards after catch and improving his route tree all offseason. From what we’ve seen during camp and his brief action in the Steelers’ preseason opener, it doesn’t sound as if he was talking to just to talk. He put into practice what he’s preached. Now he’s gotta string it all together over the course of a 17-game season. If he can do that, then we can start talking about what Pickens could become.
But the physical attributes are certainly there, and he’s absolutely getting attention for them now. We’ll see how he puts things together in his second season and if he can take a big jump in 2023.
