The word ‘bonkers’ could be used to describe a lot of what happened last Thursday night. Despite having a much better season than the one the Cleveland Browns have had in 2024, the Pittsburgh Steelers dropped their first meeting with the Browns last week. The game, which fell victim to a blizzard in the second half, was unique, to say the least. Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is confused for a different reason. On the last play of the game, Steelers WR George Pickens got into a scuffle with Browns CB Greg Newsome II, a hail-mary attempt that could have given the Steelers a dramatic victory.
On Tuesday’s episode of the Footbahlin podcast, Roethlisberger claimed he was a bit confused about Pickens’ actions.
“George is fighting with a guy before the ball is even in the air,” Roethlisberger said. “And I’m like, is he trying to draw a penalty? I’m confused by that as well. I don’t know what he’s doing. I’m not saying that he’s giving up on the play, but if you’re not making a play on the ball, what are you doing? That kind of made me bonkers too. We didn’t have anybody down there to make a play, and that’s [Pickens] your guy. If you want one guy to be down there, it’s him or Mount Washington.”
Ever since the end of Thursday’s game, George Pickens has been criticized for his actions on that play. Roethlisberger doesn’t say anything crazy about Pickens, but he seems to be yet another person questioning the receiver’s motives.
There are some reasons to defend Pickens if one wants to make the argument. Hail Marys are notoriously physical, and pass interference is seemingly never called. With that in mind, it’s a very physical play, so it’s not strange that Pickens was getting physical with his defender. In the harsh conditions, it could have been hard to track the ball, and on a slick playing surface, even harder to escape that contact and make a play on the ball.
However, there have been questions about the talented receiver as well. After the Steelers’ loss to the Dallas Cowboys earlier this season, Pickens caught a lot of heat after letting his frustration get the best of him. It happened then, and he pulled the face mast of a Cowboys defender. Now, after this loss, he lets his frustration get the best of him once again.
Winning fixes everything. When the Steelers win, they usually don’t have to talk about things like this. The quicker Pittsburgh gets back to winning ways, including Pickens, the better the vibe around the receiver will be.
