This offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers made several major changes to their team, including sending George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys. While Pickens has a lot of talent, his other issues caused the Steelers to jettison him. Presently, the Steelers don’t have great wide receiver depth, especially with a recent injury to Calvin Austin III. Despite that, former Steelers cornerback Patrick Peterson doesn’t think the team will miss Pickens.
“No, because they got a guy in DK Metcalf that can do more than George [Pickens],” Peterson said Monday on Up and Adams with Kay Adams. “DK Metcalf, you can move him around in the offensive scheme a little bit more.
“When George was there, he was primarily just an X receiver. You can game plan a little bit more with DK Metcalf versus George Pickens. DK Metcalf is a little bigger, as far as structurally. But they both can make guys miss… I think they ended up getting a great trade-off in receiver. That’s why I truly believe they will not miss George, just because they got a DK Metcalf on their team.”
When the Steelers initially acquired Metcalf, he and Pickens looked like they had the potential to be one of the best receiver duos in the league. While they have similar deep-threat skillsets, they aren’t the same player. Metcalf wins more with his impressive athleticism, while Pickens is a contested-catch machine.
Looking at how Pickens has done in Dallas, it’s hard to argue that the Steelers wouldn’t love to have a player with his talents. Through four games, he’s caught 21 balls for 300 yards and four touchdowns. His latest performance in particular was stellar. With CeeDee Lamb, the Cowboys’ top receiver, sidelined with an injury, Pickens put up eight catches for 134 yards and two touchdowns.
During his time with the Steelers, Pickens was part of some dreadful offenses. He wasn’t often put in a position to succeed. However, the Steelers’ offense looks like it’s trending upward this year. Receiver remains a weakness for them, though.
If the Steelers still had Pickens, receiver depth would be less problematic. That doesn’t mean they were wrong to trade him. During that same appearance, Peterson was adamant that the Steelers keeping Pickens and Metcalf together wouldn’t have worked.
“There was no way that they was gonna have both of those two. There’s no way.”
The Steelers miss Pickens’ talents. It’s tough to argue against that. However, they won’t miss his attitude. Pickens was often a distraction, struggling to control his emotions on the field. His time in Pittsburgh ran its course. While he’s a talented player, new scenery might’ve been best for both parties.
