The Pittsburgh Steelers attempted 23 passes yesterday, of which seven went to George Pickens. He only received seven or more targets just 10 times during the first 34 games of his career, so that’s not insignificant. The percentage share of those targets is the real story, drawing an attempt over 30 percent of the time.
That’s what a team’s WR1 is supposed to do. In that respect, and in the results that followed, George Pickens passed his first test as the Steelers’ WR1. He caught six of those passes for 85 yards, leading both teams in each category. And that doesn’t even factor in a questionable offensive pass interference penalty that negated a long gain.
For the Steelers, the only other player who drew more than two targets against the Atlanta Falcons was TE Pat Freiermuth. The recently extended veteran caught all four of his targets for a whopping 27 yards, the rest of the room minus Pickens accounting for a pittance.
The rest of the Steelers’ offense managed seven catches on the day for 44 yards, none longer than nine. Van Jefferson caught one pass for one yard, Calvin Austin III one for seven. Jaylen Warren caught two passes for 13 yards, Najee Harris one for nine, and tight ends Darnell Washington and MyCole Pruitt one each for five and nine, respectively. Basically, they didn’t even match Pickens’ output.
The Steelers thrust George Pickens into the WR1 role, surely with at least some intentionality. At the start of the offseason, they traded WR Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers. While they tried to acquire Brandon Aiyuk via trade, they were never dependent on landing him. Because they knew they would still get plays like the ones Pickens made in Atlanta.
Yesterday’s game certainly made it look like they could use him, but Pickens held his own. One also has to factor in the quarterback situation, Justin Fields finding out at the last hour that he would start. Perhaps Russell Wilson would do a better job of throwing more frequently and to more targets.
Now, Arthur Smith’s offenses have a history of success with only one premier target, which Pickens can be. If he were to produce these numbers over a season, he would finish with 102 catches for 1,445 yards.
Pickens’ history suggests he will be a feast-or-famine player, though, equally capable of 150 yards as 15. Russell Wilson gives him the best chance of stable week-to-week productivity, which probably factored into the Steelers’ desire to acquire and start him.
There’s still a long season to go, but George Pickens passed the first test as the Steelers’ WR1. Now he just has to do it for another 16-plus games—and then for another decade or so. He has the talent, which is something that nobody has questioned.
