Former Pittsburgh Steelers safety Ryan Clark had the Internet buzzing this week thanks to him praising second-year WR George Pickens. To recap, Clark, who is now an NFL analyst for ESPN, said that Pickens is “much more talented” than Minnesota Vikings WR Justin Jefferson.
While Clark did clarify that his praise of Pickens and comparison to Jefferson were based mainly on raw talent, his words still set social media ablaze. On Thursday, Pickens was asked about what Clark had to say during his interview on The Rich Eisen Show.
“I just, really, you know people gonna say like a lot of things. I take the compliment, but I just keep working and see how far I can try to take this thing,” Pickens told Rich Eisen on Thursday.
That’s about as good of a response that Pickens could have given, especially based all on what Clark said about him. After all, it’s not like Clark dissed Pickens at all. A little hyperbolic to some people? Maybe, but I get what Clark was trying to say.
After a very inspiring 2022 rookie season, Pickens now has a lot of buzz about him. That buzz really hit a fevered pitch early in training camp thanks to Pickens making a spectacular catch over the top of rookie CB Joey Porter Jr. Video of that catch, like most of Pickens’ catches to date, went viral.
Pickens has made so many great catches dating back to his playing days at Georgia that he struggles to name his top one so far.
“There’s been a lot,” Pickens told Eisen. “College, I did a lot of stuff that’s not on tape you guys can ask Coach [Kirby] Smart about for sure.”
When pressed by Eisen to name his favorite, Pickens did mention that catch against Porter a few weeks ago. However, he does have a favorite one in an NFL game that has counted, and I bet all of you know which one that is.
“The in-game [one] against the Browns. That’s probably my favorite,” Pickens said.
In the Steelers’ preseason opener last Friday night, Pickens only had one catch in his limited playing time. It was a big one, however, a 33-yard catch and run for a touchdown on a slant to close out the team’s first offensive possession.
While Pickens was measured with his words during his interview with Eisen, especially when it came to him talking about his goals for 2023, he did throw some individual ones out there after first noting that his primary one is to help the team win the Super Bowl.
“Pro Bowl, get over a thousand yards. That’s pretty much it,” Pickens told Eisen.
Can Pickens hit 1,000 yards receiving in 2023? Sure, that’s very possible, especially if he receives more targets than he did during his rookie season and if he increases his yards after the catch. As a rookie in 2022, Pickens registered 52 receptions for 801 yards and four touchdowns on 84 total targets. He also chipped in 24 more yards and a touchdown on three rushing attempts in the 882 total offensive snaps played in 2022.
While 38 of Pickens’ 52 rookie-season receptions produced either a touchdown or a first down, his yards after the catch average was just 2.0. So, the path to more catches, receiving yards, and even touchdowns for Pickens isn’t that daunting overall. Should Pickens wind up with 1,000 or more receiving yards in 2023, he should indeed have a great shot at achieving his other personal goal of making the Pro Bowl.
Will the comparison of Pickett to Jefferson be a lot more appropriate to most a year from now? It’s quite possible. In the meantime, I don’t get the sense that what Clark said about Pickens has gone to the young receiver’s head.
