Steelers' George Pickens doesn’t hold back on QB Mason Rudolph

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens had the best game of his career on Saturday, and he has quarterback Mason Rudolph to thank for it.

Pickens logged four catches for 195 yards and a couple of touchdowns in the Steelers’ blowout win over the Cincinnati Bengals, and afterward, he spoke about Rudolph.

“I was just hoping he’d give me a chance,” Pickens said, via Brenna White of NFL Media. “You never know where he’ll throw the ball, so I didn’t have a full idea. But anytime he’s throwing the ball, I’m going to try to make the best play.”

Rudolph was making his first start since 2021 with Kenny Pickett sidelined after undergoing ankle surgery and Mitchell Trubisky benched after struggling in a couple of starts.

“Mason’s always been doing that,” Pickens said. “Kind of like how I said about Mitch, about KP [Kenny Pickett] when he was behind Mitch. Those guys, they always follow their job and do their role pretty good and Mason’s been doing that the whole time.”

Rudolph went 17-of-27 for 290 yards and a pair of touchdowns in what may very well have been the best performance of any Pittsburgh signal-caller this season.

“A fast start. No matter whether you’re in high school, college or pro, it makes a difference. And especially when we’re at this venue at home, gets the crowd into it," Rudolph said. "To get a guy like George going early. His run-after-catch ability is just second to none, so it was a pretty cool view as I tried to chase him down from behind.”

Rudolph was referring to the 86-yard touchdown pass he threw to Pickens in the first quarter. The throw was initially 10 yards to Pickens, but the speedy wideout turned it into a huge play for the game's opening score.

The performance by Pickens came a week after he was heavily criticized for not properly blocking for running back Jaylen Warren during a red-zone rushing attempt in a loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

Pickens’ commitment to the team has been questioned much of the year, but his performance on Saturday should at least temporarily silence his critics.

The Steelers improved to 8-7 with the pivotal win and will head on the road to battle the Seattle Seahawks next weekend. They will then take on the Baltimore Ravens to wrap up the regular season.