The Pittsburgh Steelers losing against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football wasn't alarming in a vacuum, but Mike Tomlin's team certainly did leave a lot of meat on the bone. Despite the 3-2 start and Justin Fields' improvements, there is some friction between Mike Tomlin and wide receiver George Pickens.
Pickens' attitude is starting to rear its head. Despite the fact Pittsburgh's offense hit a wall against the Cowboys, Tomlin was only willing to play Pickens for 34 of 57 snaps despite the huge lack of depth at wide receiver. The 20-17 loss saw Pickens only muster three catches for 26 yards and get into a fight at the end of the game.
Tomlin tried to send a message by eating into Pickens' snaps, but it didn't seem like the former Georgia star was reciprocating. Film from Pittsburgh's loss to Dallas shows that Pickens is now starting to let his frustration move to the field of play.
With the Steelers driving in the red zone, Pickens wasn't even committed enough to run his route. Pickens just jogged up to the line of scrimmage after Pittsburgh ran a play that wasn't targeting him, which has to get Tomlin's blood boiling after a close home loss.
lol I had to go find this https://t.co/haRrM8wryE pic.twitter.com/JrOoB3TfWi
— Nick Farabaugh (@FarabaughFB) October 7, 2024
Pittsburgh Steelers WR George Pickens seemingly quits on play during SNF
Pickens, who led the NFL in yards per catch last season despite the presence of Kenny Pickett at quarterback, has just 23 catches and no touchdowns this season. Among wide receivers, Pickens is blowing everyone else on the roster away. Calvin Austin and Van Jefferson are tied for second on the team in wide receiver catches with eight in five games, all while rookie Roman Wilson hasn't been a factor.
Pickens found himself on the wrong end of mockery from Cowboys defensive back Jourdan Lewis. Pickens ripped Lewis down by the facemask and earned some serious shade in the tunnel. As talented as Pickens is, and as valuable as he is in both the short and long-term future, actions like this make him look more clownish by the minute, which is exactly what drives Tomlin crazy.
Tomlin is no stranger to working with diva wide receivers, and Pickens is feeling exactly how Tomlin can try to mess with them when they aren't playing up to par. If this continues, Tomlin may have no choice but to further eat into his playing time at wide receiver.