George Pickens has caught flak for his actions on the final Hail-Mary play against the Cleveland Browns, but Russell Wilson isn’t fanning those flames.
It appeared as if no Steelers players were making a play on the ball, and that was because Pickens was meant to be the point guy to go up for the catch. The only problem was that he was too busy fighting with Greg Newsome II in the back of the end zone. Wilson was asked if he’s had conversations with Pickens to state the importance of him sticking to the plan of being the point man on that play.
“George is always trying to make a play obviously,” Wilson said in a video posted by ESPN’s Brooke Pryor on X. “Unfortunately, I believe that he was getting pushed out and he was trying to get to the spot, so it’s an unfortunate situation.
“We got so much belief in George. Obviously he’s proven that, and what he’s able to do for us. Man, he’s one of the world’s best at what he does. I’m glad he’s our teammate.”
Mike Tomlin took a similar stance when it came to answering for Pickens’ perceived wrongdoing on that play. He claimed that he didn’t see video of the scuffle, but he was obviously aware of it. He also pointed to the Browns interfering with Pickens down the field.
It is hard to argue against that, but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t a teaching opportunity behind closed doors. What happens in these press conferences and what happens in meeting rooms are very different things. If Pickens was being interfered with, it’s his job to sell that to the refs and make a move back to the ball to get taken out by Newsome. Instead he played right into it and got frustrated. He also likely cost himself money with the NFL reportedly reviewing his actions.
With how good Pickens is at making spectacular catches in traffic, I am just bummed we didn’t get to see an actual Hail-Mary attempt more than anything.
Wilson showed great leadership with his answer to the media and defended Pickens, as he should.
