The Steelers Know How to Pick WRs: 3 Reasons Why Pickens Will Be a Star

The Pittsburgh Steelers used not one, but two draft picks in the 2022 NFL Draft on the wide receiver position. No surprise here as the Steelers love to find wide receivers on Days 2 and 3 of the draft, and are quite good at doing so. The team spent their 2nd round pick on Georgia Bulldog WR standout, George Pickens. Pickens is going to be a star for this Steelers' offense. Here's why:

The Steelers Have a History of Drafting and Developing Talent at the WR Position

The Steelers have a long history of drafting talent at the position and helping turn them into productive wide receivers, especially under former GM Kevin Colbert. Just to name a few...

2002 - Antwaan Randle El (2^nd round)

2006 - Santonio Holmes (1^st round)

2009 - Mike Wallace (3^rd round)

2010 - Emmanuel Sanders (3^rd round)

2010 - Antonio Brown (6^th round)

2014 - Martavis Bryant (4^th round)

2017 - JuJu Smith-Schuster (2^nd round)

2019 - Diontae Johnson (3^rd round)

PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 30: JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts after a 11-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on December 30, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)

Of course, not all wide receiver selections have been hits, however, to quote a Head Coach, Mike Tomlin, "Tomlinism," "Such is life in the National Football League." It's going to happen, you're going to take big swings and miss sometimes, but the Steelers hit rate is pretty high when it comes to picking the wide receiver position. I'll trust their process with doing so, and history is on Pickens' side to produce in Pittsburgh.

Pickens has the Tangibles, Plain and Simple

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receivers, George Pickens (#14) and Tyler Vaughns (#80) participate in the organized team activities (OTA’s), Thursday, May 26, 2022 at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. | Abigail Dean / Pittsburgh Steelers

Prospect Summary from draftnetwork.com:

"He is sudden off the line of scrimmage and quickly closes the DB’s cushion. He is fluid and shows good body control as a route-runner, easily attacking leverage against man coverage. He has a very good catch radius and shows tremendous athleticism to contort his body and make difficult catches on off-target throws. He is a natural hands-catcher with strong mitts who easily catches the ball away from his body. He is a matchup problem in slant/fade situations. He can defeat press with foot quickness but will need to add mass, bulk, and upper-body strength to his wiry frame in order to play through physicality in the NFL."

Checkout Pickens' full prospect profile from draftnetwork.com!

Pickens can flat out go up and get it, wherever the ball is. He showed that he can produce at Georgia. The wide receiver posted 90 receptions for 1,347 yards and 14 touchdowns during his time in Athens, with the majority of those receptions, yards, and touchdowns coming from his freshman and sophomore years, due to the ACL tear in March of last year.

Take it from Pickens himself, who doesn't lack confidence, he's explosive because...

"“Really? Everything. I’ll probably say my catch radius, I’m tall my arms are long. Like, you were just talking about them fast, too. So strong, physical. I can block, I can really do everything. And I think when they say explosive, that’s like an overall aspect of my game.”

No Rush to be Main Target

With pass catchers consisting of Johnson, a player that has all the potential in the world, Chase Claypool, and star in the making, TE Pat Freiermuth, there's no rush for Pickens to be "The guy" just yet. This will give the Steelers time to help Pickens develop into the star that he absolutely can be. I'm not saying he won't get ample playing time this year, because he most likely will. He can play any of the wide receiver positions, even though I feel his ideal spot is on the outside. He's going to allow Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada to get creative with packages and moving all the wide receivers around this season to keep defenses guessing.

Pickens stated he practiced in the slot position quite a bit while at Georgia.

"“Yeah, like at practice I would always play slot instead of just outside, because that was like my game [position]. When I get in the game, I’ll play that [outside], but practice I always play slot. Catch like jet sweeps, screens, and stuff like that. So yeah, I was always comfortable with tight spaces. I was just always bigger so it forced me to outside, you know what I mean?”

 

What do yinz think? Will 2nd round pick, George Pickens be a star in this league? Sound off in the comment section below, or on Facebook, Twitter, and/or Instagram!

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