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Pittsburgh’s star WR missed three games with a hamstring injury earlier this season.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have gone through a bit of a drought on offense lately, struggling over the past five weeks since their first meeting with the Cincinnati Bengals back in Week 13. In three of those weeks, the team was without its star wide receiver George Pickens, who was dealing with a hamstring injury, so the production wasn’t exactly unexpected. But still, the lack of improvement in the two games once he returned has fans understandably concerned.
In his two games since returning from injury, Pickens has caught just four of his 13 targets for 50 receiving yards, including a goose egg in Week 18 — his first goose egg, interestingly, since Week 18 of the 2023 season. He and Russell Wilson haven’t been on the same page. The connection they had in the deep passing game just hasn’t looked the same.
Another thing that hasn’t looked the same? Pickens’ route speed averages over the past two weeks; they are lower than what he’s averaged over the course of the season. Is there a chance he’s not yet fully healthy?
Courtesy of NFL Next Gen Stats, here’s a look at Pickens’ route data from the last two weeks versus his average in the 12 games prior.
- Average speed at the target point: 10.96 MPH (Weeks 1-13), 10.01 MPH (Weeks 17-18)
- Route speed at 1s: 7.83 MPH, 7.42 MPH
- Route speed at 2s: 12.56 MPH, 12.05 MPH
- Maximum route speed: 13.93 MPH, 13.18 MPH
It’s possible the decreased average speed is a mere coincidence. However, it’s worth noting that hamstring injuries can be rather tricky, so it wouldn’t necessarily be a shock to think he may not have been at his full capacity over the past two weeks, despite having returned back to the lineup.
Another odd tidbit regarding Pickens’ usage in Week 18’s catchless outing — he played 100% of his snaps out wide per Next Gen Stats — not a single snap out of the slot. That’s the first time in his career (regular or postseason) that Next Gen has documented a 100% snap rate out wide. Peculiar, indeed.
Regardless of Pickens’ health, it’s abundantly clear that this team goes as Pickens goes. His success is integral to the offensive success of the team, and unless he and Russell Wilson can figure out their chemistry problems, the team’s postseason hopes are bound to come to an end rather quickly. The good news, at least, is that Pickens is another week removed from the injury, hopefully set to make a big-time wild-card leap.