Steelers Mike Tomlin Has High Expectations For 2 Insane Weapons

The Pittsburgh Steelers have a very young offense with a ton of potential, and a lot of that has come from one school in particular. George Pickens, Broderick Jones and Darnell Washington have all come from the legendary Georgia Bulldogs teams of 2021 and 2022. On The Rich Eisen Show, Mike Tomlin talked about his expectations for Pickens and Washington for the 2023 season. Like with everything else on the team, those players playing up to their potential can be crucial to how the Steelers fare in the upcoming season. 

Tomlin couldn't help but laugh once Eisen mentioned Pickens being on the show two weeks ago. Afterwards, he confirmed that he wants Pickens to "make the routine plays routinely" and clarified what he means by that.

"I just want him to get really comfortable with what can be drudgery; the high-volume things that come with being a professional, the things that you need to do on a routine basis. We all know that he is capable of the spectacular, and I love that about his game, but I want to see him make the routine plays all the time."

Steeler Nation has seen plenty of what Pickens can do during the 2022 season and 2023 camp. They also noticed that there were plenty of games where he saw little-to-no action. Tomlin listed out the things that Pickens needs to do to get more targets and to be featured more in the Steelers new offense. 

"The stops at the sticks on possession downs, the catch-and-run slants away from bump-and-run, the routine things that big-time wideouts do that don't get a lot of attention. You just take it for granted. If he's going to be what we need him to be and what he aspires to be, he's going to have the spectacular component of his game, but he's going to do the routine things as well."

Pickens has been known as a receiver that struggles to get separation, leading to Kenny Pickett targeting his other receivers despite having that great chemistry with Pickens. If Pickens can work on his route running and separation tactics, he could easily be an elite receiver in the NFL. Pickens knows this, since Tomlin also confirmed that he reminds him to do the routine things routinely "three-to-four times per day." 

The conversation shifted from Pickens to Washington after that, and Eisen asked Tomlin about what he wants out of Washington in his rookie year. Even though there were reports of Washington starting to lean closer to being a receiving tight end, Tomlin focused on his blocking ability. 

"I love the fact that he embraces the blocking component of the position. He's got the physical attributes to boot. He's been really good during team development. I'm excited about what he can bring at the point of attack and the run game. We don't talk a lot about it, but you need guys that look like 4-3 [defensive] ends to block 4-3 ends. He looks like some of these animals that play 4-3 ends. He's been better in the passing game through this process than we anticipated."

Throughout the drat process, Washington was hyped as a physical freak that could be a great blocking tight end. He was supposed to be a second-round pick, but he fell to the Steelers late in the third round due to injury concerns, but those concerns seem to be in the past. When you can dominate TJ Watt on the edge, you know there's something special about him. 

Tomlin mentioned his ability as a run blocker as well, which could help spring Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren on more outside runs and zone reads in the C Gap. If Washington can live up to the hype and the expectations that Tomlin has for him, he will be able to carry that "sixth offensive lineman" moniker from Athens to Pittsburgh.

What do you think of Mike Tomlin's comments on George Pickens and Darnell Washington, as well as their abilities and potential in the NFL? Let us know down in the comments.

#SteelerNation.