It wouldn’t be a Pittsburgh Steelers loss if there wasn’t some drama involving George Pickens after the final whistle. For the second time this season—the first against the Dallas Cowboys—George Pickens was involved in some extracurriculars after the game ended. This time, it appeared to be with Cleveland Browns CB Greg Newsome II, and it ended with George Pickens being restrained by Browns security at the Huntingdon Bank Field.
You can see Pickens being held back by multiple security guards in the video below.
Pickens and Newsome got tangled up on the final Hail Mary and ended up out of the back of the end zone against the back wall, per video from ESPN’s Brooke Pryor on X. She also reported that he declined interview requests in the locker room after the Steelers’ 24-19 loss.
It was a last-ditch effort for the Steelers to attempt a comeback, but it was knocked down by the Browns easily with no real chance for the Steelers to catch it.
Pickens is the guy who would be the most likely to haul in that kind of pass given his knack for spectacular catches, so it was confusing at first to see him nowhere within the camera frame when the ball was batted down. It then cut to George Pickens being restrained by security guards.
It was Pickens’ worst game since Russell Wilson entered the starting lineup. He hauled in four receptions on seven targets for 48 yards in inclement weather.
There was one deep ball from Wilson to Pickens in the end zone that was off target. I will have to go back to see if Pickens drifted on his route or if Wilson just missed him outright. The Steelers ended up scoring a touchdown a couple plays later, so it was relatively inconsequential to the outcome, but it could have salvaged Pickens’ day statistically.
We will see if Newsome speaks to the media in the Browns’ locker room for some more context on this scuffle.
