Before this season began, the Pittsburgh Steelers made a commitment to George Pickens by trading Diontae Johnson. The latter had been the Steelers’ No. 1 receiver, but with him gone Pickens was in line to fill that void. He’s been doing an exceptional job at that. That’s become more than evident while he’s missed time due to a hamstring injury. Analyst Robert Mays of The Athletic is surprised by just how vital Pickens has become to the Steelers’ offense.
“I remember the first time we ever discussed the Steelers, and we were talking about George Pickens in our AFC North preview,” Mays said Friday on The Athletic Football Show. “I was like, ‘You know what? I think there’s more to George Pickens than the way that he’s painted, just as this big, vertical, ball-winning X receiver. I think that he can take his game up a notch this year.’
“And that happened, but I still didn’t think we’d get to a place where he was the most important piece for an NFL offense. I think where I’ve arrived with Pickens is he’s the most unlikely irreplaceable player in the NFL at this stage of the 2024 season.”
Mays might be surprised by how much the Steelers’ offense needs Pickens, but many fans have likely been aware of that for quite some time. The Steelers seemed to understand it too because they spent most of the offseason and the first half of the season trying to trade for a receiver. They were aware how lacking their depth at receiver is.
That hasn’t really changed either, which is why Pickens’ absence looms so large. The Steelers don’t really have another pass catcher who can replicate his production. They did trade for Mike Williams to prepare for moments like these, but he hasn’t been very impactful yet.
Pickens’ skill set is a tough one to replace. His connection with Russell Wilson has been stellar. The two of them have gone together like peanut butter and jelly. Wilson’s fantastic deep ball combined with Pickens’ penchant for coming down with contested catches makes the Steelers’ offense dangerous. There are very few other receivers in general who can win like Pickens.
There might be other players who are more irreplaceable than Pickens, but like Mays says, it’s obvious how much their teams would miss them. That includes quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen and pass rushers like T.J. Watt. Usually, Pickens’ name wouldn’t belong with those but based on how the Steelers’ offense looked last Sunday, he shouldn’t be excluded.
Tomorrow, the Steelers have an opportunity to lock up the AFC North title. Not having Pickens really hurts their chances at winning. Like Mays says, they can’t replace him. However, they can try to recreate him in the aggregate, to borrow a line from “Moneyball.”
One player can’t be Pickens, but maybe the Steelers’ group of pass catchers can come together to create a similar impact. It’s probably going to take a group effort for the Steelers’ offense to be good enough to beat the Baltimore Ravens. Pickens isn’t magically going to appear on the field. The team has to overcome adversity and win in spite of his absence.
