George Pickens is flourishing since Russell Wilson took over as Steelers' starting QB

Naturally, if you head to social media and search for George Pickens, you're bound to see more reaction to his suplex of Mike Sainristill after Russell Wilson's interception than you will for his touchdown reception.

Though his chaotic nature and his highlight-headlining plays have become more of a norm, Pickens is doing more in 2024 than his usual gameday routine.

George Pickens is breaking out into a true No. 1 receiver, and he can thank his new quarterback for giving him the opportunity to do so.

It's true, Pickens has done special things no matter who his quarterback is. He's taken over games with lesser quarterbacks at the helm. But now, through three games with Russell Wilson launching moon balls and the occasional underneath toss his way, Pickens is beginning to show promising consistency.

George Pickens is thriving with Russell Wilson at the helm

Through the first two and a half years of Pickens' intriguing career, he has never led the Steelers in receiving for three straight games. In Pittsburgh's last four games, Pickens was the leading receiver.

In this streak, the last three were more impressive than the first - his last game with Justin Fields at quarterback. Against the Raiders, Pickens caught three passes for 53 yards. Since then, Pickens has caught 14 of his 21 targets for 276 yards and two touchdowns.

These aren't Ja'Marr Chase numbers, no. But it's an indicator that he is stringing together solid performances in a manner he hasn't replicated before to this point in his career.

In any other three-game stretch in his career where he put up more receptions or yards, one of those three games was a dud comparatively to the other two. For example, he closed the regular season (Weeks 13-16) last year with 14 receptions for 373 yards and two touchdowns, but the first game only attributed three catches for 47 yards and no scores. That was the Indianapolis game where he infamously didn't block for Jaylen Warren, a forgettable performance all around for him.

Pickens may never be a volume stat guy like Chase or Justin Jefferson, and he may not necessarily need to be that guy. Nonetheless, he has shown glimpses of being a truly dynamic No. 1 option. He's currently on pace for his second-straight 1,000-yard season and a career-high in receptions.

If he keeps performing at this level, he'll crush his career highs in all meaningful statistics save for yards per catch. That's a breakout season for a guy in Pickens' position.

Everyone will always appreciate his circus catches and frankly bizarre blocking and stiff-arm methods. And while the league is taking notice that the Steelers can play offense again, they'll notice there's a bit more to Pickens' game than unbelievable feats of body control (and sometimes a lack thereof) that go viral on social media.