Steelers WR George Pickens has drawn elite player comparisons (and more will come)

You would be hard-pressed to find many football fans who watched George Pickens last year and didn't come away impressed. After being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Pickens took the world by storm with his innate play-making ability.

This was first on display at Steelers training camp, as he wowed with his ability when the football was in the air. Pickens eventually went on to have an impressive rookie season that included 801 yards and 4 touchdowns on just 84 targets.

Pickens' 9.5 yards per target ranked 13th in the NFL among wide receivers, and Steelers quarterbacks had a 109.3 passer rating when targeting him in 2022, per Pro Football Reference. With how much he flashed at times as a rookie, the 22-year-old receiver is now drawing some impressive NFL player comparisons.

Back in June, cornerback Patrick Peterson said on the All Things Covered Podcast that Pickens reminds him of three-time First-Team All-Pro receiver, DeAndre Hopkins. Hopkins was considered one of the best receivers in the league of the past decade.

Peterson and Hopkins overlapped just one year on the same team together with the Cardinals in 2020, but being a cornerback typically tasked with covering the best receivers in the league, Peterson knows Hopkins very well.

Hopkins isn't the greatest athlete or the most dynamic receiver after the catch, but this is obviously very high praise for George Pickens -- and it's not hard to see where Peterson is coming from. Both Pickens and Hopkins share a remarkable ability to reel the football in despite heavy traffic, and their ability to rise up and catch the ball over defenders is as natural as it comes.

George Pickens will draw more elite WR comparisons as his career marches on

This isn't going to be the only time you hear someone compare George Pickens to an All-Pro receiver, and there are sure to be many players, analysts, coaches, and executives who offer up impressive player comps for Pickens in the near future. It's hard not to be mesmerized by his ability.

Admittedly, Pickens isn't quick and sudden enough to draw realistic comparisons to top NFL receivers like Justin Jefferson or Ja'Marr Chase. But already, I've seen him compared to Hopkins, Dez Bryant, and Tee Higgins thanks to his innate ability when the ball is in the air.

If Pickens can improve as a route runner, it will open up a whole new avenue of potential and it would expand these player comparisons even further. George Pickens may only have one season under his belt, but both NFL media and casual fans can recognize the talent he oozes with. If he can take a step forward in 2023 (and we expect him to) Pickens will be compared to some of the best receivers in the league.