The Pittsburgh Steelers’ recent frustrations have reached a boiling point after three straight losses. There is a lot of chatter surrounding the future of this team, including but not limited to Mike Tomlin. One of the big talking points surrounded second-year WR George Pickens. During Saturday’s loss to the Indianapolis Colts he took a play off, refusing to block his guy who ended up being a part of the tackle to keep RB Jaylen Warren out of the end zone.
Veteran WR Allen Robinson II spoke to members of the Pittsburgh media before practice on Wednesday and talked about Pickens.
“You gotta put the efforts out there to create winning habits,” Robinson said in a clip posted by 93.7 The Fan on X. “I think that sometimes for younger players it may take some time to understand that or see that. Him being able to see that and how certain efforts when you are on the field, how those can be game-changing situations. Rather it being a touchdown, or a tackle at the 1.”
Pickens spoke to the media after Tuesday’s practice and claimed he was trying to avoid an injury on the play, something that happened to Houston Texans WR Tank Dell while blocking recently. There are some situations where business decisions as a skill position player can be more understandable, but the clip of his effort on that play is now front-page headline material that everybody in the locker room is being asked about. It was a toss play to his side, so he should have definitely known the ball was coming his direction. The fact that the Steelers ended up scoring is irrelevant. They have had red zone struggles this season and it very well could have ended up in a field goal, or even another turnover on downs near the goal line.
“Luckily we were able to score on that drive,” Robinson said. “Just kind of continuing to help him understand and compartmentalize the big picture of the team efforts.”
QB Mitch Trubisky recently pointed to Robinson as one of the leaders people look to on offense in the locker room. In this situation, he is showing those leadership skills and seems committed to getting through to Pickens. As the media and fan base continue backing Pickens into a corner, that task will grow harder and harder.
