UPDATE: 4:25 p.m.: According to Steelers’ Senior Director of Communications Burt Lauten, Hoge is not a scout for the team. Previously, Hoge was scout for the franchise leading up to the 2023 NFL Draft, as was previously reported here at Steelers Depot.
Lauten later added in a comment to a reader that Hoge stopped being a scout for the team shortly before training camp. There was never an official announcement that Hoge was stepping away from the scouting department, or that a change occurred with his status.
Our original story is below.
Throughout his time in the media, former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Merril Hoge hasn’t been afraid to say what’s on his mind regarding players, Steelers or not.
In recent years, he has lambasted former linebacker Devin Bush, and on Wednesday during an appearance on the 102.5 WDVE Morning Show with host Randy Baumann, Hoge took aim at second-year Steelers’ wide receiver George Pickens, who is in the news for his social media activity and sideline antics coming out of the 20-16 win over the Tennessee Titans.
In that game, Pickens had just two catches for -1 yards, ran off the field immediately after Diontae Johnson’s go-ahead touchdown and was seen sulking on the bench, before then sharing a photo to his Instagram story Friday, writing “free me” underneath it before downplaying it Saturday morning and then Wednesday inside the locker room with reporters.
For Hoge, he’s seen enough. Pickens’ antics can become a big problem moving forward, but for the former Steelers’ running back, he’s more irritated with Pickens’ inability to look in the mirror and question himself.
“It can be a big deal. …He has all these complaints about officials and not getting the ball. And they might be legitimate, but there’s a few other things that you are not evaluated that disturb me. Number one, you didn’t get your feet inbounds. Why didn’t you mention that?” Hoge said Wednesday, according to audio via 102.5 WDVE’s podcast page. ” Why didn’t you mention that you didn’t get your feet inbounds? Why don’t you mention sometimes you run routes halfway. Why don’t we talk about the times you don’t play hard? Like you never evaluate those things.
“You don’t bring those things up. You’re not angry at those things. You don’t post those things, but you’re gonna post all these other things. That’s a problem, okay? And it does speak to, I mean, he’s very immature.
“I mean, he is. …I think people know that. You’re gonna have to take and establish some way for him to establish ownership. And you gotta challenge him on that. You can’t just say, well, he is a young kid. And make these excuses for him. ’cause he’s making excuses…” Hoge added, according to audio via 102.5 WDVE’s podcast page. “You point fingers and cast blame, but not one time did you look in the mirror. Not one time. And we’re not going anywhere, we’re not gonna build championships with people like you and attitudes like that. We just won’t.
“So you wanna change that? Change that. If not, then we’re gonna have a problem going into the future.”
Well, then.
Hoge isn’t wrong, either. It’s just, as a former team employee and a prominent figure in the Steelers’ history, a rather eye-opening, shocking comment from Hoge.
But at the heart of his comments is the truth. Pickens is immature. That shouldn’t be a surprise. He’s 22 years old and in his second season in the NFL. Maturity happens at different points in people’s lives. Pickens hasn’t had that happen yet.
The more concerning thing with the whole Pickens situation though is that lack of ownership, at least publicly. He might be frustrated with his role in the offense now that Diontae Johnson is back on the field and the true No. 1 receiver for the Steelers. That’s limited his targets, and understandably so. But he has to realize his presence alone on the field is helping the Steelers’ offense, and subsequently helping the Steelers win.
Teams are paying considerable attention to him, freeing things up for others. It’s a team game. As former Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward stated over the week, it’s not about Pickens. It’s a team game and he needs to learn that — and fast.
He can start with the ownership part of things. He tends to get lazy in his routes, doesn’t always play hard, and then when he had an opportunity to make a game-changing play on Thursday night, he was lazy with his feet — Shannon Sharpe’s words — and didn’t make a play he does routinely.
Those types of things come with young players. But whether people want to hear this or not, this is a turning point in Pickens’ career, for better or worse. Like Hoge stated, he can change his attitude and his ways overall, or he can keep being the way he is now and slowly play himself out of the organization.
It’s his choice. He’s facing adversity for the first real time in the NFL. Let’s see how he responds.
