Steelers' George Pickens, Kenny Pickett Developing A Special Bond, But Keeping Boundaries: "He's My Quarterback Not My Girlfriend"

The Pittsburgh Steelers got a taste of the connection developing between its first two draft picks of 2022 as their rookie seasons progressed. George Pickens caught all four of his receiving touchdowns from Kenny Pickett in the second half of the season, after the signal-caller was made the starter. The two are looking to build on the connection, but Pickens said there are limits to the kinship. 

The talented young pass catcher selected 52nd overall at the 2022 draft joined Rich Eisen on his show on Thursday. The veteran analyst asked Pickens about his developing relationship with Pickett. 

Pickens said he and Pickett "are super good friends off the field," which allows them to be in perfect sync when they hit the grass or turf on gameday. Eisen tried to probe to see what kind of activities the pair engage in together away from football, like seeing a movie. 

"He's my quarterback, not my girlfriend," Pickens told Eisen. "We've been to dinner before, but nothing crazy."

Eisen jokingly crossed off a question on if the quarterback and receiver were planning to go see Barbie. He later asked him who picks up the check at the end of the meals they've had together, and Pickens said they try to pick restaurants where they know they'll be taken care of. He added that a lot of the bonding between the two has been hanging out together and with other teammates in the spaces in training camp at Saint Vincent College.

The pair have been a trendy pick as breakout players and with a full offseason of work together, it's reasonable to expect them to take the connection that was starting to become evident in 2022 to another level in 2023. They started off the only drive of 2023 so far for the Steelers' starting group on offense with a pretty connection for a 33-yard touchdown on Pickens's only catch of the first preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  

Steelers' Pickens Sticking To The Fundamentals To Help Reach Another Level  

Pittsburgh Head Coach Mike Tomlin said earlier in the offseason during a press conference that he is looking for Pickens to take the next step by "making routine plays routinely." There's been plenty of chatter recently about Pickens's immense talent, particularly after former Steelers safety, Ryan Clark said he's more talented than Minnesota Vikings All-Pro receiver, Justin Jefferson.

Pickens is happy to take the compliments, but said he knows that he's still got plenty of things to work on. He believes that if he focuses on some of the smaller stuff, he'll be able to do even more with his natural ability. 

"For a person like me with so much talent, I feel like the fundamentals can take me to another level," he said. "I've just been trying to do the little things right. People have said I'm raw and sometimes with all that talent, I get out of control on my routes."     

He explained to Eisen that in the past, he's sometimes been slow off the ball or not going the right depth on routes. He elaborated that as a receiver, you have an internal clock on plays and for example, on a 15-yard route, you need to be ready to possibly get the ball quicker than you expected. 

Pickens said he loved the feeling of winning a pair of National Championships with the Georgia Bulldogs in college and now has his eyes set on a Super Bowl. If he and the Steelers are going to be anywhere close to a championship in the near future, the offense is going to need to take a leap forward. The Pickett-to-Pickens connection will be a major key to that happening. 

Where do you think this duo can rank in the league? What do you want to see from Pickens in 2023? Comment below!

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