Back on Nov. 10, former NFL defensive end Chris Long, during an appearance on his popular podcast “Green Light” on YouTube, stated that he believed second-year Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens had Hall-of-Fame talent.
Of course, those comments from Long came after yet another outburst from a frustrated Pickens on the sideline and on social media after the Week Nine win over the Tennessee Titans.
Quite a bit has transpired since then with Pickens, including his lack of effort on a run play near the goal line that he stated he was trying to avoid injury on. That led to head coach Mike Tomlin needing to address the media for a second time last week leading up to the Week 16 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.
That lack of effort and the tone-deaf comments made many wonder if Tomlin was going to bench Pickens, even with the Steelers staring down a must-win game. Obviously, Tomlin didn’t do that.
Pickens rewarded the Steelers with a four-catch, 195-yard, two-touchdown performance in a 34-11 win over the Bengals, showing just how immensely talented he is. For Long, that type of performance and how he made splash plays is exactly what he meant when it came to Pickens having Hall-of-Fame talent.
“George Pickens taking that ball to the house right off the bat, 21.54 miles an hour, speeding in a school zone. When I say Hall-of-Fame talent, that’s what I mean, okay?” Long said regarding the Steelers’ second-year receiver. “It wasn’t just that. It’s the 44-yarder to set up a field goal, 86-yarder off the bat, 66-yarder. This guy, he’s a problem for defenses.
“If he can just maximize his talent, and some of that goes to the offensive coordinator, some of that goes to the quarterback, but just hang in there, George. Because these are the types of performances that could be more common for you if you get more help and if you have the right attitude.”
There is no denying Pickens’ physical traits.
He’s an elite-level height/weight/speed weapon with incredible body control and field awareness, allowing him to make some absurd acrobatic catches. Though he’s had his struggles in contested-catch situations this season, throughout his career he’s been nearly unguardable in 1-on-1 situations due to his physicality and strong hands at the catch point.
And even despite the lack of effort on the Jaylen Warren run in Week 15 against the Indianapolis Colts, Pickens has plenty of reps on tape where he’s a good blocker.
Coming off the tumultuous week, Pickens answered the bell, which is all anyone wanted him to do. He says he blocked out the noise but then stated that he kept receipts. So, he definitely heard the criticism and took notes on it, which is fine.
He very clearly used last week as fuel and it led to a career game. Long wants to see more of that from Pickens, especially after Pickens mimicked on the sideline covering his ears like he couldn’t hear anyone.
“I think you hear us. I think you hear everything everybody said, and unless it’s just a coincidence or Mason Rudolph is Joe Montana and you didn’t know it, like, the reason you played this way is because you took it personally. And I love that because that’s what I would do,” Long said regarding Pickens. “Maybe I wouldn’t be able to run 25.4 miles an hour or whatever it is. And maybe I wouldn’t have been as good as you were in that spot. But when somebody said something about me when I played, I took it personally, and you should take it personally, and you should go out and right that wrong.
“But to say you didn’t hear anybody, I think you heard people perfectly. And I think that’s the reason you balled out.”
There is no doubt that Pickens heard the criticism. He was a man on a mission last Saturday, and Cincinnati caught all of his fury under the bright lights of Acrisure Stadium.
If he can just keep his head on straight and channel his emotions in the correct direction, he’s going to remain a massive problem for NFL defenses for a long, long time.
