For the first time since the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Thursday night win against the Tennessee Titans, WR George Pickens spoke to the media. And the conversation had little to do with football. Instead, the attention revolved around him appearing frustrated during the game and his social media activity after it.
Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Pickens downplayed all those storylines, saying he’s happy the Steelers won and that he has no issue with the team.
“Nah,” Pickens said via The Trib’s Chris Adamski when asked if he was upset.
Following the team’s win, Pickens reportedly was among the first players to leave the locker room and did not speak with reporters. He caught two passes for minus-one yard against the Titans, failing to get his left foot inbounds on a would-be touchdown that forced the Steelers to settle for a field goal.
On Friday, Pickens then removed almost all photos from his Instagram page, including every single one as a Steeler, and posting Instagram stories with the caption “Free Me.” He later deleted that post and restored some of his Steelers photos, telling reporters his activity there had nothing to do with what transpired during the game.
“Just clearing out my page. Nothing too crazy,” he said. “It had nothing to do with the Steelers at all.”
During his Tuesday press conference, Mike Tomlin downplayed the story, accusing the media of making it “reality TV” while referring to the situation as a “pebble in my shoe.” In that, it’s not a distraction or anything that Tomlin is worried about. His teammates had a slightly different tune with WR Allen Robinson II noting he has spoken with Pickens at different points about handling not getting the football.
At the end of Adamski’s clip, Pickens said he was just happy the Steelers beat Tennessee.
“We got the victory. [Diontae Johnson] got a touchdown. We just engineered victory. I was just happy, if anything.”
Clearly, Pickens didn’t look happy throughout the game. He sulked on the sidelines and reportedly had OC Matt Canada console him a few times on the bench. Canada was in his first game calling a Steelers game from the sideline as opposed to his usual spot up in the booth. Pickens also did not celebrate with Johnson after his touchdown, his first since 2021, instead immediately turning around and walking to the sidelines.
For Pickens, he’s a second-year player dealing with the difficulties of the NFL. Not getting the ball. Hearing criticism from fans and media. Defenders trying to get under his skin. Still only 22 years old, Pickens said the right things in this interview. But he’ll have to channel his frustration in a better way when it happens again. Playing in a weak passing game, there will be future games where Pickens isn’t as involved as he’d like to be.
