There’s a reason why the Pittsburgh Steelers wanted to get rookie wideout George Pickens more involved in the offense in Week 3 against the Cleveland Browns.
During the first quarter of their tilt on “Thursday Night Football,” we saw exactly why. Pickens made the catch of the year thus far, hauling in a 36-yard pass from Mitchell Trubisky with one hand.
Pickens’ grab was the highlight of a seven-play, 75-yard scoring drive which resulted in a five-yard touchdown run from Najee Harris. But it was the catch that sparked the drive and social media — which is buzzing.
George Pickens Was Right: He is Always Open
Pickens, the 2022 second-round pick out of Georgia, came into Thursday with just two receptions for 26 yards through two games. Pickens was vocal this week about the frustration of not getting the ball, telling reporters he was open 90% of the time in the 17-14 Week 2 loss to the New England Patriots.
“I just say that because I’m a big guy that runs in the low 4.4s,” Pickens said, via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I always have a step on somebody and my step is naturally longer than the other person, and I’m actually fast. I’m always [going to] have a step and always feel like, 99 percent of the time, I’m open even though the ball gets there in the air and [the defender] gets time to catch back up. … But I’m open as soon as I get off the line.”
Pickens was not lying. He really is open 100% of the time, even when it appears he’s blanketed by opposing cornerbacks. Pickens, meanwhile, was understanding that he’s new and so is Trubisky, meaning it’ll take time for the two to develop chemistry.
“I’m new, and he’s a new quarterback,” Pickens said. “I just go by my day, run my right route. The good thing about football is you have another play, another drive. I take it one play at a time. If I get the ball, it’s cool. If I don’t, it’s cool because you’re not going to get the ball every time.”