Could the Pittsburgh Steelers be self-sabotaging themselves by tying their pocketbook to the usage of second-year wide receiver George Pickens?
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio certainly thinks so.
Appearing on 93.7 The Fan’s PM Show with hosts Chris Mueller and Andrew Fillipponi, Florio stated that he thinks the Steelers might not be making Pickens the focal point of the offense to try and avoid a “contractual monster” in the near future.
No, really. Florio said that on air. It’s somehow more ridiculous that it sounds. Seriously.
“Why aren’t they even looking his way? They aren’t even looking his way in the progression. He should be the centerpiece to the offense. He should be the guy that they are constantly looking to get the ball to creative ways, handoffs, bubble screens, short passes, long passes. This guy is one of the most dangerous players in all football. And they won’t make him the centerpiece of the offense,” Florio told Fillipponi and Mueller, according to audio via 93.7 The Fan. “And I don’t get it. It’s either that they don’t realize what they have or the theory that I articulated on PFT Live: They kind of don’t want to create a contractual monster with George Pickens because they would if they use him to his full extent.
“If he would have the kind of performances that he’s capable of, at some point you gotta pay him 30 million a year. So if you never fully embrace what he can do and he never becomes that superstar that he could be, you never have to give him a contract that is among the best receivers in the game.”
Yes, the Steelers are actively going out of their way to limit Pickens’ usage for the second straight season to try and keep his potential earnings in the future more affordable for the Steelers. Does Florio understand how crazy that sounds, especially in this offense?
Maybe not, considering he said it on radio.
Here’s the even crazier part: Pickens leads the Steelers in targets with 17 through two games. The next closest Steeler in targets is running back Jaylen Warren with 11. Wide receivers Allen Robinson II and Calvin Austin III are the next closest to Pickens at the position with 11.
Even when Diontae Johnson was healthy in Week One, Pickens out-targeted him, 7-6. Pickens had a team-high 10 targets on Monday night against the Browns in his first true foray into a No. 1 wide receiver status for the Black and Gold.
No other receiving option had more than six targets. Again, that was Warren. Austin had the second-most targets at receiver against the Browns with just four.
At the receiver position only, Pickens has an absurd 31% target share. How, exactly, is that not making him a focal point of the offense? It’s a misguided, half-baked theory from Florio. The Steelers aren’t worried about extending a wide receiver on a rookie contract right now. He’s not even eligible for an extension.
Florio should know that.
Asking the Steelers to run jet sweeps, screens and more with Pickens just to get him the football seems a bit silly. He never received a carry in the NFL because he’s such a downfield monster, and he has just three career carries in the NFL to date, though one of which was a 22-yard touchdown.
Pickens isn’t exactly a guy you want to get the ball in space and ask him to create YAC. That’s not his game. It never has been, and it likely never will. He’s a contested-catch monster who wins downfield with his size and speed. Take more deep shots to him, but don’t worry about getting him the football on screens and jet sweeps.
The Steelers aren’t going out of their way to avoid Pickens as a focal point of the offense. There are a lot of issues with Pittsburgh’s offense under Matt Canada. Getting the ball to Pickens — let alone targeting him — isn’t one of them.
