Training camp is always an exciting time for a fan who is invested in their team. You get to see your old favorites and new and watch as storylines form. For the Pittsburgh Steelers this year, arguably the most energizing storyline has been the pairing of second-year WR George Pickens against rookie CB Joey Porter Jr.
The two young studs have gone at it extensively throughout training camp, with their viral moment a good example of why. Even though Porter had good coverage, Pickens made an exceptional catch, about which there was little the defender could do.
“I feel like it’s getting me ready”, Porter told Missi Matthews for the team’s website about what he takes away from his practice reps against Pickens. “Iron sharpens iron. That’s what Coach always says. You’ve got to compete. Both of us are not shying away from competition, so that’s just going to make us better at the end of the day”.
Although Porter was held out of the first preseason game on Friday while nursing a minor injury, Pickens made an impact in just 10 snaps. He was only out there with the starters on the opening 10-play drive, but he capped it with a 33-yard catch-and-run score on a slant.
It wasn’t perhaps an all-timer for the highlight reel in terms of degree of difficulty at the catch point. Indeed, it was QB Kenny Pickett who had to thread the needle to get it to him. But Pickens got where he needed to be in a somewhat uncommon instance in which that wasn’t just down a straight line.
Fans now await Porter’s preseason debut, which should be this upcoming Saturday when the Steelers host the Buffalo Bills. It should be a good pairing against WRs Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis, who offer different skill sets to defend. Diggs is a nuanced route runner while Davis is a deep threat. He’s gotten work against both types with Diontae Johnson and Calvin Austin III, respectively, with Pickens a combination of the two styles.
Though it was the wide receiver who got to showboat during their viral moment, Pickens putting the ball in Porter’s face after making his catch, the defensive back believes he does have the upper hand in the area of showmanship between the two. “He trash talks a little bit, but I feel like I’ve got some good stuff on my side, too”, he said.
Let’s hope the pair of them do a lot of effective trash-talking after making plays against their opponents on Sundays for many years to come. The work that they put in together on the practice field should only benefit both and make them more complete players.
