The Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense runs through Russell Wilson and George Pickens, at least when it manages to run. That is, anyway, the areas in which the Steelers are most effective. The running game is voluminous, but inefficient, yet also necessary. At the end of the day, they’re simply trying to make the best of what they have, Shannon Sharpe says.
“We cannot place all this at the feet of Russell Wilson when he has a guy that’s supposed to be a receiver that turned into a retriever”, Sharpe said on ESPN’s First Take. “That meant he picked the ball up and handed it to the official. That’s not your job description, George Pickens. Your job is to catch the football”.
Just to clarify Sharpe’s statement, he is referring to Pickens’ drops from the last game. He became a “retriever” because he let the ball hit the ground and had to go get it. In the finale, he caught one pass on six targets from Wilson for zero yards.
For his part, Russell Wilson has been unfailingly supportive of George Pickens. He vouches for his top receiver every chance he gets, especially at his lowest moments. That is a natural part of Wilson’s leadership, but he has been particularly relentless with Pickens.
The conversation around him is always an interesting one, I find. So often we end up conflating talent with achievement. When it comes to George Pickens, both with Russell Wilson and before, it has always been about potential. Yet we somehow almost always manage to leave out the fact that he doesn’t always live up to his potential. He doesn’t make as many of the plays he is “supposed” to make as a top receiver in the game.
But when it comes to the Steelers’ success or failure with Russell Wilson, it goes far beyond Pickens for Sharpe. “Arthur Smith’s got to do a better job of scheming”, he said. “You see your left tackle is getting it handed to him Saturday and…you empty the backfield. You don’t slide the protection to him, you don’t chip, you don’t help, you do nothing”.
He is referring to Dan Moore Jr., who played a major role in allowing Trey Hendrickson to sack Wilson three and a half times in the finale. It’s a wonder he even had time to get the ball out to Pickens six times during the game.
The Steelers hired Smith this offseason to improve their offense, but it’s fair to question the initial results. But then, are the results on Smith or are they on the players—or rather, how much blame do we assign to each variable?
Both Russell Wilson and George Pickens have contributed negatively for the Steelers in recent weeks. While both have made plays, they have also been a part of the problem as well as a part of the solution. Shannon Sharpe believes they can win if they build a team around Wilson—but not with Pickens.
