Steelers' George Pickens is Back Again

Steelers' Pickens is Back

In the Cowboys 44-30 loss to the Lions, Pickens stole the show for negative reasons. The entire NFL world reacted as the 24-year-old wideout showed little interest in the game and was frustrated throughout it.

He finished the night with five catches for 37 yards.

The criticism came in bunches as even broadcaster and former Super Bowl champion Richard Sherman slammed Pickens' performance during the game.

"The big story here was George Pickens,” Sherman said. “George Pickens throughout the game, especially late in the game, just looked uninterested. Uninterested in playing football. And that's what you can't have if you're gonna be a superstar. If you wanna be the best receiver in the National Football League, you can't ever be disengaged. Doesn't matter if the game's going your way or not going your way.

"You can't just disappear in these games... You're the guy! CeeDee Lamb is not in this game... And you can't be the guy and half a-- it. I'm sorry. It's unacceptable."

This is Why Steelers Made the Trade

Pickens' lack of effort during games and at times during the season is exactly why Pittsburgh chose to move on. It had nothing to do with his talent or placement on the team. Everyone in the Steelers front office is aware of how good Pickens is and is going to be in the NFL, but they also saw three years of his back-and-forth effort.

Pickens routinely showed up late for practice and meetings in Pittsburgh and caused issues off the field with cryptic social media moments and interview comments.

Eventually, the Steelers grew tired of it. They chose to move on during the offseason but the NFL didn't show the interest in Pickens that they expected. He didn't go for a third-round pick because the Steelers were willing to sell cheap but rather because the NFL didn't make offers of higher value.

Now, Dallas is seeing why. And if Pickens continues to slide the way he did against Detroit, it's going to raise plenty of conversation about who really won the Steelers-Cowboys wide receiver trade.

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