Pittsburgh Steelers WR George Pickens has eight catches on the season for 114 yards on 11 targets. But that doesn’t even begin to describe the impact he has had on the Steelers’ offense—nor his potential impact. The reality is that, one way or another, he already has a quality game’s worth of numbers nullified by penalties. Let’s recap them and what they mean not just about where his numbers should be but about his impact.
36-Yard Catch Negated By Offensive Pass Interference
Going back to the season opener, George Pickens caught six passes for 85 yards. But he didn’t get this one, which should have gone for 36 yards. The officials flagged him for offensive pass interference, which others have disputed. Instead of 1st and 10 from the 18, it was 3rd and 19 from the Steelers’ own 36. They punted two plays later in a one-possession game, rather than having a chance to go up by two touchdowns.
5-Yard Defensive Holding Call
Late in the first half against the Broncos, Pickens was giving CB Patrick Surtain II fits. He drew a holding call on this play, which the Steelers accepted, negating a 7-yard catch by Van Jefferson. Rather than 2nd and 3 from the Steelers’ 46, it was 1st and 5 from the 44. But the real point here is he caused Surtain problems.
37-Yard Defensive Pass Interference
Midway through the third quarter, the Steelers attacked Surtain deep, immediately following a takeaway in the red zone. George Pickens nearly caught the ball in spite of the interference, but that is 37 hidden yards. It doesn’t show up on the back of his football card, but the Steelers saw it on the field. That nearly put them into field-goal territory, which they ultimately capitalized on thanks to Chris Boswell.
51-Yard Catch Negated By Offending Holding
This one was a backbreaker, of course. Justin Fields, after getting flushed out of the pocket, delivered a beautiful throw to Pickens, who reeled it in seemingly effortlessly. Unfortunately, the officials docked RT Broderick Jones for holding, negating the entire play. The original play came on 2nd and 18 from the Steelers’ 43. The catch would have given them the ball on the Broncos’ 6, but instead, it was 2nd and 28 from their 33.
6-Yard Touchdown Negated By Offensive Pass Interference
At the end of the first half, it appeared George Pickens had his first touchdown of the season from six yards out. However, the officials flagged the Steelers for setting an illegal pick on Van Jefferson. Again in this case, even a former official disagreed with the call. The Steelers settled for a field goal.
Add all of that up and that’s 135 yards of offense, one way or another, either accounted for or not. And there is a touchdown in there, as well as multiple explosive plays negated by penalty. There are two positive plays in here for the Steelers, for which Pickens lost out on 41 receiving yards, too. Bottom line, there’s another strong game’s worth of stats lost in the penalty ether for Pickens, some good, some bad.
