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It's not a secret that the Pittsburgh Steelers have had their fair share of head cases and cancers in their locker room throughout the Mike Tomlin era. Tomlin has been given his flowers when it comes to keeping guys like Antonio Brown, Chase Claypool, and Diontae Johnson under control during their time in Pittsburgh, but once he understood that it was time to part ways, people saw pretty quickly why. Tomlin will get the best out of his players in due time and other organizations respect that. When a player becomes too much for Tomlin, then their time in the NFL starts to dwindle.
CBS reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala was the latest person to give their flowers to Tomlin. She shared a story with her followers on X about an unnamed executive she spoke with about the Steelers' head coach. If Tomlin gives up on a player, teams should wise up and not bring them into their locker room, just like Claypool. The most recent example of a failed Tomlin guy is Johnson, who spent a lot of time on the wavier wire this past season.
"There is no coach in the NFL with more patience while waiting for a player to turn the corner than Mike Tomlin," said Kinkhabwala. "If Mike Tomlin gives up on a player, only someone delusional would take a chance on that player. Talked to an exec today who said after the Chase Claypool fleecing, he thinks everyone gets that."
With all of that being said, it brings up the question of George Pickens' future. Pickens hasn't helped his case with Steelers fans with his on and off field antics. While the talent is there, many are worried he is becoming a similar story as Johnson and Claypool. However, Kinkhabwala says as of right now, Tomlin isn't giving up on the young receiver.
"There is NOT a George Pickens trade windfall," said Kinkhabwala.
Obviously, things can change quickly in the NFL. Now that General Manager Omar Khan has finally landed his big name wide receiver in DK Metcalf, if Pickens' antics continue to be an issue, it wouldn't be to anyone's surprise that he is no longer in Pittsburgh. Tomlin knows what kind of receiver he has with number 14 and believes that he can have a successful career with the Steelers if he cleans up his act.
This offseason, there has been much speculation that Pickens is on the trade market. With great talent in the 2025 NFL Draft and the Steelers actively trying to add talent to the receivers room, many believe that the team will move on from Pickens. While Metcalf's arrival feeds the flames of these rumors, it seems the team is giving Pickens at least the 2025 season to show some improvement through the mental aspect of his game.
If history truly repeats itself, Pickens must make strides to earn his stay with Pittsburgh or he could end up like Johnson and Claypool. There will be teams that would take a chance on him, but they may not have the same patience as Tomlin, just ask Johnson.
Steelers' Pickens Given One Last Year To Prove His Worth And Growth
It seems that the trade rumors about Pickens don't have much weight to them. The Steelers will try the Metcalf-Pickens duo for at least a year before making their final decision. They have their answer to their number one option at receiver if they were to move on from Pickens. The Cleveland Browns scuffle and Pickens' other on-field shenanigans must stop this upcoming season or he could get the treatment of the recent Steelers receivers to hit the road.
The Steelers would love to keep Pickens long-term and have that dynamic duo for multiple years, but it comes down to Pickens' mentality in 2025.
Can Pickens clean up his act? Does Metcalf add more pressure to Pickens to show growth this upcoming season? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
More must-reads:
- Baker Mayfield names key reason he found success with Buccaneers
- Tua Tagovailoa addresses relationship with Tyreek Hill after controversial comments
- The 'Single-season sack leaders by NFL team' quiz
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Tua Tagovailoa addresses relationship with Tyreek Hill after controversial comments
Shortly after Miami Dolphins players reported for training camp on Tuesday, Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill suggested he wants to be "better as a leader" after he controversially subbed himself out of Miami's regular-season finale this past January and then told reporters he was "out." While speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa addressed the Hill-sized elephant in the room. "I think there’s a lot more vulnerability with Tyreek," Tagovailoa explained, as shared by Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. "He’s conversating a lot more with the guys, not just about football, but about things off the field, being vulnerable about some of the things people know about his personal life and things of that nature. I think that’s the first step toward him building true relationships and a real connection with a lot of the guys in there." Following Hill's "out" comment, Dolphins general manager Chris Grier revealed that the 31-year-old speedster never requested a trade. While publicly apologizing to his teammates during a Super Bowl week interview, Hill directly said that Tagovailoa is his "guy." Hill also insisted at the time that he loves Tagovailoa. "Everybody makes mistakes," Tagovailoa added about Hill. "It’s just, some people, they’re in the spotlight, and their deals get pushed out more than some others. So you’ve just got to cut him some grace. That’s our teammate. We love him, but as a person, I think if you get to know him, you’ll love him too." Hill and Tagovailoa likely will need to be on the same page if they want to prevent the Dolphins from going through a franchise reset next offseason. At least head coach Mike McDaniel is reportedly on the hot seat this summer, while Tagovailoa's status beyond the upcoming campaign is up in the air after he suffered a third reported concussion since the fall of 2022 last season. "You guys aren’t the only people that heard that," Tagovailoa said about Hill's "out" statement. "...So when you say something like that, you don’t just come back from that with, 'Hey, my bad.' You’ve got to work that relationship up. You’ve got to build everything up again. It’s still a work in progress, not just for me but for everybody. But like I said, he’s working on himself, he’s working on the things he says he wants to get better with and do better on. So that’s the first step to me, so I commend him for doing that." As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the 2024 Dolphins at -275 betting odds to miss the playoffs. Those who believe the relationship between Tagovailoa and Hill is on shaky ground following Wednesday's developments may want to take a flier on such a wager before the odds change later this year.
Rafael Devers had telling comment about playing first base
Rafael Devers played first base for the San Francisco Giants for the first time on Tuesday, and his quote about playing the field likely will not sit well with Boston Red Sox fans. Devers said after Tuesday’s game that he prefers playing in the field as opposed to serving as a designated hitter. “It keeps me active. It keeps my head out of just thinking about the next at-bat,” Devers said, via Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle. “I’d rather be on the field than in the cage hitting all the time and thinking about the next at-bat.” Devers, of course, refused to play first base for the Red Sox after they asked him to. He felt disrespected after they moved him off third base to accommodate Alex Bregman, and thought the team went back on its word by later asking him to play first. To Red Sox fans, if Devers is best playing in the field and playing first would have helped the team, it will be baffling why he did not just do it when that would seemingly have been a preferable outcome for all involved. Devers went 2-for-5 in Tuesday’s 9-0 win over the Atlanta Braves, driving in a run in his first appearance at first base. It remains unclear how frequently the Giants plan to use him at the position, but the team might take note of these comments.
Penn State QB Drew Allar gets candid about team's struggles against top opponents
It is no secret that Penn State has struggled to win big games under head coach James Franklin. While the Nittany Lions have finished with double-digit wins in six of the past nine seasons, including a 13-3 season in 2024 that culminated with a loss to Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinals, they have struggled to beat quality opponents. Quarterback Drew Allar, who enters the 2025 season with the fifth-shortest odds (+1600) to win the Heisman Trophy, per FanDuel, was honest about Penn State's lack of success during his appearance at Big Ten Media Days on Wednesday. "We definitely need to get over the hump," Allar said, per ESPN's Jake Trotter. "There's no question about it." Penn State is only 4-20 against top-10 opponents under Franklin, although the three losses last season were all by one score. Allar is 23-6 as a starter, but threw a costly interception against Notre Dame that ultimately led to the game-winning field goal from the Fighting Irish. With experience on its side and lofty expectations entering the season as the No. 1-ranked team in ESPN's offseason poll, Allar pointed to better execution as a key to Penn State's success. "We definitely need to find different ways to come out with different results in those games," Allar said. "We haven't really been blown out of the water by any team. ... it's just about execution. ... finding those areas to make one or two more plays throughout those games. ... That's going to be our focus." One key for Penn State is the return of its two leading rushers from last season, Kaytron Allen (1,108 yards) and Nicholas Singleton (1,099 yards), who combined for 20 TDs. That experience, along with Allar's improved accuracy (66.5%) and career-high 3,327 passing yards from 2024, gives the Nittany Lions a lot of upside going into 2025. Allar did have an uptick in interceptions (eight) and was sacked 19 times last season, which are two concerning areas, especially against top-ranked opponents. That must improve for Penn State to reverse course and finally win meaningful games. For now, the focus is on its lack of success in those games under Franklin. If Penn State can execute and not beat itself, perhaps one of those games will eventually go its way. Until then, it will face the same questions as it looks to put its past struggles in big games behind it.
Aaron Boone ejection signals struggles are pushing him to breaking point
New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone keeps losing his grip. After defending Yankee players for not showing enough emotion during losses in a recent podcast interview, the manager had another outburst in Wednesday's road game against the Toronto Blue Jays. At the top of the seventh inning, Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe was called out on a strike, despite the ball looking well above the zone. Home plate umpire Manny Gonzalez subsequently ejected Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake for arguing the call. After that, Boone stepped in. Boone walked out of the dugout and let Gonzalez have a piece of his mind even after being ejected. Frustration had been mounting for Boone. Gonzalez had already missed a strike three call in the top of the third inning but apologized for it. The Yankees were also trailing, 6-4, when he was ejected. They didn't come back from that deficit as Toronto won, 8-4, capturing the second game of the three-game series against New York. Attribute the loss to an atrocious defensive performance from the Yankees. They committed four errors, two of which allowed the Blue Jays to score runs. With the loss, the Yankees' chances of winning the American League East are slipping. Toronto (60-42) is first in the division ahead of New York (56-46). If the playoffs started Wednesday night, the Bronx Bombers would have the first AL wild-card spot. Even more concerning for the Yankees, they haven't looked like a World Series contender over their past 10 games, going 5-5. With 60 regular-season games remaining, the Yankees still have plenty of time to get their act together. Still, they should do it soon for Boone's sake. He seems like he's reaching his breaking point.
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