On Saturday at Indianapolis, Steelers wideout George Pickens quit on a play.
Pickens stood idle while running back Jaylen Warren got tackled at the Colts’ 1-yard line. If Pickens blocks, Warren scores a touchdown.
On Tuesday, Pickens said he declined to block because he didn’t want to risk injury, citing a broken fibula suffered by Houston receiver Tank Dell. But Dell’s injury occurred in a pileup at the end of a running play off a power formation. Very dissimilar.
Anyway, you’re supposed to block. It’s part of Pickens’ job.
Pickens was 100% non-apologetic, instead blaming the media: “Guys who ain’t never played a game.”
Except for all the ex-players in the media who criticized Pickens.
Because Pickens didn’t admit that he erred, we can assume that coach Mike Tomlin or one of the Steelers’ perceived leaders didn’t chew him out between Saturday and Tuesday. If that did happen, it obviously didn’t take.
Pickens is a selfish, narcissistic punk with an overbearing ego.
The Steelers made a mistake taking Pickens in the second round of 2022’s NFL Draft, especially knowing that he dropped out of the first round despite being amazingly talented because he had a track record for the problems he’s currently causing.
You can’t fix what Pickens is. Nobody ever fixed Antonio Brown. But at least Brown was the best receiver in football for four seasons.
None of this reflects well on Tomlin, his culture, his so-called “leaders” or Pickens.
If Pickens plays in this Saturday’s home game vs. Cincinnati, that reflects even worse. Pickens should be inactive.
That would lessen the Steelers’ chances of winning, but their season is ruined, despite what the standings say.
If Pickens plays, it sends the wrong message. But that’s Tomlin’s specialty: Wrong messages.
The loudest, stupidest and most selfish of the Steelers have long been front and center in their locker room. That started with Brown. The rest of the team does nothing to fix that.
Cam Heyward, Minkah Fitzpatrick and T.J. Watt aren’t leaders. They’re just experienced, good players who get labeled thusly because somebody’s supposed to be.
They’re not leaders like those Tomlin inherited from Bill Cowher, his predecessor as Steelers coach. They’re not James Farrior, Troy Polamalu, Hines Ward, Alan Faneca or Aaron Smith. Tomlin’s culture is a long way from Cowher’s.
Like Polamalu said on my radio show upon his retirement, “When I first walked into the Steelers locker room, I looked around and saw men. Now all I see are little boys.”
Tomlin can’t fix it. The enabler can’t suddenly become the fixer.
Tomlin doesn’t want to fix it, anyway. That will be evident when Pickens plays Saturday.
It’s a soft locker room. Here’s betting that even Warren didn’t admonish Pickens, even though Pickens cost him a touchdown.
I didn’t like Ward. He didn’t like me.
Ward was an egomaniac, a narcissist and a baby. Whines Hard.
But Ward put winning first. Unlike Pickens.
Ward put his body on the line. Unlike Pickens.
Ward overachieved. Pickens won’t even live up to what his pedigree dictates.
Ward would have got Warren into the end zone on Saturday. Pickens didn’t.
Ward would have laid somebody out. Pickens didn’t.
Ward was a Steeler. Pickens isn’t.
The Steelers need to make Pickens inactive vs. Cincinnati, then get rid of him in the offseason. Ditch Diontae Johnson and Najee Harris, too. If this was college football, all three would be in the transfer portal. They don’t want to be Steelers.
The Steelers wouldn’t be better. But they’d be that much less embarrassing.
