George Pickens made a few big plays against the Cincinnati Bengals. He only had three catches, but he made each of them count. The only issue is, two of those big gains were partially negated by unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. After the first one, OT Broderick Jones showed a bit of leadership by helping Pickens keep his focus.
Jones talked to the media after the game and revealed what he said to Pickens.
“I just told him because he’s such an emotional guy, you got to let him know, next play. You did that. It’s over with, next play,” Jones said according to 93.7 The Fan on X. “Go make another play. Be smart, no dumb stuff.”
This was on his first reception of the game. He took a shallow route for a 21-yard gain with some elusive running to pick up extra yards. He appeared to celebrate towards the Bengals sideline. Intentional or not, that is going to draw a taunting penalty. He converted on 3rd down, but the 21-yard gain ended up being just five after the penalty yardage.
You can see the full play below, including Jones talking to him after the fact.
Pickens was also asked what Jones told him during his media availability on the Steelers’ YouTube.
“He didn’t really say much, to be honest,” Pickens said. “It was kind of a ticky-tack game. Just glad we came out with the dub.”
Given Pickens’ history of getting frustrated and lashing out during games, it seemed firmly at risk of happening after the events of the first quarter. First, Pickens was ripped down by his helmet during a pick-six and then he got a penalty on his big reception. Mike Tomlin also appeared to speak with him on the sideline after the pick-six and Jones rallied around him after the penalty.
Tomlin spoke about Broderick Jones as an emerging leader of the offensive line after his rookie season last year. It’s been hard to view him that way because of his sophomore slump, but these moments remind you that both players are 23 years old and Jones seems to have the right leadership mentality.
In the end, Pickens didn’t have any significant issues aside from the unsportsmanlike penalties, but those weren’t overly egregious.
“I never want to hurt the team,” Pickens said.
The other penalty on Pickens initially seemed like it would result in an ejection, since two unsportsmanlike calls usually do, but the second one was because of a gun gesture and not aimed at the opposing team.
