The Pittsburgh Steelers are preparing for a pivotal game on Saturday afternoon against the Indianapolis Colts. The outcome of this game will have a significant bearing on the team’s playoff chances down the stretch. Interim offensive coordinator Eddie Faulkner, during the weekly coordinator press conferences on Wednesday, touched on second-year WR George Pickens’ importance to the offense.
“We definitely need to,” Faulkner said of getting the ball to Pickens in a clip posted by 93.7 The Fan on X. “Again, that’s something we’re always thinking about, trying to scheme and get done. And then we got to throw the ball to him, so we’re going to continue to never tire to get GP the ball. We know what kind of talent he is.”
This season was supposed to be a breakout one for Pickens. He flashed all kinds of potential his rookie year, and with another year of chemistry between him and QB Kenny Pickett, the recipe for a breakout was clear. Only, it hasn’t worked out that way. He had three 100-yard games in the first six games of the season but has failed to reach that mark since Week Seven when the Steelers came off their bye. He is currently the team’s leading receiver but has just 767 receiving yards this season through 13 games. He is on pace to barely crack the 1,000-yard mark.
Frustrations have started to boil over, recently prompting head coach Mike Tomlin to say “it’s a problem” referencing the way Pickens has been airing his frustrations on the field and in the locker room. One way to quickly turn that around is getting him more involved in the game plan.
Last week, Pickens was targeted six times, hauling in five receptions for just 19 yards. That is not the type of impact a player of his talent should be having. With Pickett suffering a high ankle sprain in Week 13 against the Arizona Cardinals, the onus falls on QB Mitch Trubisky and Faulkner to get Pickens more involved. It sounds like that is top of mind for Faulkner. Regardless of the game plan, Trubisky will need to be able to get the ball to him on time and frequently throughout the game.
A good start would be ensuring his route chart on targets doesn’t look like this again, via Next Gen Stats.
