It’s been a long, trying year for Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens. And sources told CBS Sports they believe he has turned a corner, in part, after taking substantial financial penalties over the past few weeks.
After being publicly called out by his head coach in December, Pickens put together strong Weeks 16 and 17, where he caught 11 passes combined for 326 yards and two touchdowns. And although he was not targeted in the win against the Ravens in the regular season finale, Pickens later said that the only thing that mattered was getting the win.
A source says Pickens has been fined $200,000 or more by the NFL and Steelers combined this year, a larger-than-average figure for any player regardless of contract status. The NFL has fined Pickens a total of $33,441 in publicly available fines for unnecessary rudeness and unsportsmanlike conduct. Team fines and other league fines are generally not public information.
The six-figure sum represents a good portion of Pickens’ salary this season. A player in the third year on his rookie deal, the former second-rounder makes a base salary of $1.318 million in 2023
Before the Week 16 game against the Bengals, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said that the issues with Pickens would not be fixed by just one meeting or one type of discipline. The level of public accountability was unusual for a head coach who keeps things in-house.
Tomlin told the media that week, “I would like him to be more professional in terms of working out some of his shortcomings with you guys to add more fluidity to the process.” “He’s not helping himself, he’s not helping the process with the way he treats you guys. But the way he treats you guys isn’t necessarily Be with us or even with yourself in a way of accepting where it is or where it needs to go.”
The message seemed to get through to Pickens, and it probably helped that Mason Rudolph threw him the ball. Pickens had 195 yards and two touchdowns against the Bengals, and he followed that up with seven catches for 131 yards against the Seahawks in Week 17.
“He’s in a much better place,” a source said. “He’s doing everything he’s asked.”
Another source said, “He has changed his stance and is working very hard.”
Pickens’ talent is undeniable. He led the entire NFL in yards per reception (18.1) this season, and he had only one drop on 106 targets.
His 1,140 receiving yards were the most on the team and the most in a season for the franchise since 2021.
Monday’s Super Wild Card Weekend game against the Bills will have temperatures in the teens and wind chills in the single digits, so throwing the football could be difficult for both teams.
The Bills have not allowed a 100-yard receiver since AJ Brown in Week 12 against the Eagles. Since then, Buffalo has won five consecutive games and allowed the fourth fewest passing yards per game in the league.
