Nearly a week later and Ben Roethlisberger is still trying to make sense of the Pittsburgh Steelers trading George Pickens. On his first Footbhalin podcast since last week’s move that dealt Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys, Roethlisberger admitted his thoughts are “jumbled” for why the Steelers decided a fresh start was important, especially post-draft.
“I wonder, is he a bigger headache than we even know?” Roethlisberger told co-host Spencer Te’o. “Obviously, we saw last year there were some issues. Coach Tomlin even came out for the first time in a long time and criticized a player. Saying he needs to grow up. Publicly.”
As Roethlisberger noted, Tomlin offered a rare public criticism of Pickens after routinely defending him to the media throughout his three-year tenure. Those comments came after Pickens racked up two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in a win over the Cincinnati Bengals after a frustrating start, a non-call on Pittsburgh’s first drive that led to a pick-six.
“He’s just gotta grow up, man. It’s an emotional game, man. These divisional games are big,” Tomlin said last December. “He’s got a target on his back because he is George; he understands that. But he has gotta grow up.
“He’s gotta grow up in a hurry.”
Comments Roethlisberger endorsed Tomlin making. Pickens never seemed to get the message. While wildly talented and capable of making plays few others can, he also made headlines for penalties, on-field and sideline outbursts, and was reportedly habitually late to meetings, team trips, and even games. Omar Khan’s recent comments were those of a franchise that had given up on Pickens maturing.
He’s just the latest example of a difficult Steelers receiver getting traded, joining Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, Martavis Bryant, and Antonio Brown. Santonio Holmes was also traded in the Mike Tomlin era, while we cited Chuck Noll making a similar move with star WR Roy Jefferson in 1969.
Roethlisberger understood the Steelers weren’t likely to re-sign Pickens in the 2026 offseason, losing him to free agency. Instead of potentially obtaining a 2027 compensatory selection, Pittsburgh guaranteed a 2026 third-rounder. Where that slots in depends on the season Dallas has but the additional pick continues to stockpile the team’s selections next year.
“Is this more of a we’re building for the future type thing?” Roethlisberger said. “Are they trying to build up draft capital for next year to move up in the draft? You just picked up two picks now. One’s this next year, one’s the year after. In my head, I’m thinking like,’ okay, the draft’s in Pittsburgh next year. Can they find a way without losing, obviously you wanna try and win, but winning this year, but still using draft capital to get a Top-10 pick next year in Pittsburgh?”
Still without a long-term answer at quarterback, Pittsburgh figures to be on the shortlist of teams making a strong push for one of the top passers in next year’s class. How strong a group it is remains to be seen. Most draftniks expect it to be better than 2025’s weak crop, just three quarterbacks selected in the Top 75 picks, but there’s no guarantee it’s as strong as the 2024 class that produced six passers in the top dozen.
Assuming the Steelers don’t hold one of the draft’s top selections, they’ll likely need to trade up to land a blue-chip prospect—a move that comes with risk but a big-time payoff. The Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs made gambles on Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes. No one remembers what they gave up for either player.
Just as current players like CB Beanie Bishop Jr. envisioned, Roethlisberger was looking forward to Pickens and DK Metcalf making plays for a Steelers’ offense looking for a boost.
“It would’ve been so much fun to see those two receivers on the field,” he said. “And to be like, this is awesome.”
Instead, the Steelers will work to replace Pickens’ role in the lineup. That begins internally with WR Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson. Austin broke out in 2024 but doesn’t profile as an outside receiver and is best as a No. 3 who occasionally makes a splash play. Wilson is a blank slate who barely participated in his rookie year, ankle and hamstring injuries severely hampering his season. If Pittsburgh doesn’t like their progression, the team could consider free agent and trade avenues.
Check out the entire episode of Roethlisberger’s podcast below.
