George Pickens has been a human highlight film this offseason. Whether it was his spectacular grab in training camp against CB Joey Porter Jr. or his insane sideline catch on Thursday against the Atlanta Falcons, he seems to have a knack for the jaw-dropping play.
Thanks to this, Pickens has earned his share of believers, and seemingly everyone is predicting a breakout season for the young receiver. Analyst Craig Carton and former Steelers WR Plaxico Burress are among these believers. They discussed Pickens’ performance and how the Steelers’ offense looked as a whole in a 24-0 win over the Falcons on The Carton Show on FS1.
“The guy that everyone’s excited about, who will tell he is the best receiver in football if you ask him is George Pickens,” Carton said. “The Pittsburgh Steelers offense looked ready to roll [on Thursday].”
“If those young wide receivers Diontae Johnson and Pickens continue to make plays like that, then Pickens will begin to get recognized as one of the best wide receivers in all of football.” Burress added. “Never count out a Mike Tomlin-coached football team.”
While many are predicting the Pickens breakout, it means a lot coming from someone who had as much NFL success at the position as Burress did. After the Steelers drafted him eighth overall in 2000, he had a quiet rookie season, recording under 300 yards and not finding the end zone.
But, just like Pickens will aim to do this year, Burress had a huge Year Two. He racked up over 1,000 yards and led the 13-3 Steelers in receiving. That would go on to be his first of four 1,000-yard seasons in the league.
The range of opinions on Pickens right now is interesting. On one hand, there are some who like Burress and Carton, think he’s going to end up being regarded as one of the elite NFL receivers by the end of this year. Some have even gone so far as to label him a dark horse pick to win Offensive Player of the Year. However, it’s far from a lock that he is even the number one wide receiver on the Steelers, as Johnson has quietly had a great camp and preseason.
Regardless of where he falls within that range of outcomes, Pickens’ ability to make the spectacular play adds a layer to this offense that few others in the league do. He should make life a lot easier for QB Kenny Pickett as well as Johnson, hopefully for years to come.
