The Pittsburgh Steelers have a big decision to make this offseason regarding wide receiver George Pickens. Despite Head Coach Mike Tomlin's insistence that they would be able to get it done without adding another playmaker to the locker room, it became apparent their offense couldn't hold up against the elite teams in the league without someone else.
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Steelers' George Pickens.
Pickens has been a polarizing figure since arriving in the Steel City, and as he enters a contract year, the talk of moving on from him has only ramped up. It is clear the Steelers need to retool their offense if they want a postseason win in 2025, and Mark Kaboly from The Pat McAfee Show told the 93.7 The Fan Morning Show that it starts with what they do with Pickens.
He said he waffles back and forth on whether or not they should keep him. Kaboly has always felt that if they allow Pickens to play in 2025 without an extension, he will be a problem. He doesn't think he will be like Najee Harris was this past season, where he did his best to audition for a job with another team by being an asset to Pittsburgh. Kaboly said that Pickens' life in Pittsburgh really depends on which direction the team goes in free agency and who they are able to acquire.
"It depends on how free agency goes," said Kaboly. "If they are able to get somebody worth a crap in free agency, a wide receiver 1.5 so to speak, not a legit Tee Higgins. But somebody who can come in there and be a difference maker, but not that top echelon guy, then I would go shop him instantly and try to get some picks, try to build your team out through the draft. Say you acquire [Chris] Godwin, [Keenan] Allen, Christian Kirk, that kind of guy, you're first thought is, 'I'd like to put him across from George Pickens.' Now, if you get Davante Adams, Tee Higgins, what are the odds of that? Then you change your thought process."
Kaboly said he feels they will be more likely to sign a receiver in free agency who is at that number two-level like they should have done for 2024, and if they do that, they will need to retain Pickens so they don't wind up in the same situation again. He said he can't imagine them making the same mistake twice. The Steelers traded Diontae Johnson after the 2023 season and failed to secure a solid playmaker to line up across from Pickens. Kaboly said that if the team repeated that same scenario, it would be Calvin Austin III who would be the number one receiver in Pickens' place, and he just isn't that kind of player.
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Steelers' Calvin Austin III.
The last thing they want to do, according to Kaboly, is cut off their nose to spite their face by trading Pickens without a backup plan. If the Steelers want to get to the level of the teams that defeated them at the end of the season, they need to overhaul that receiver room and will have to spend some money to do it.
Steelers Have To Strike Early
Fans certainly can't blame General Manager Omar Khan for a lack of effort during the 2024 offseason. According to reports, the Steelers attempted to get multiple elite wide receivers, such as Brandon Aiyuk, Davante Adams, and Christian Kirk. None of them panned out, and it likely had little to do with Pittsburgh.
In fact, in the Aiyuk and Adams scenarios, it seems as if Pittsburgh was used as a bargaining chip to get the players what they really wanted. In Aiyuk's case, it was a big contract to stay with the San Francisco 49ers, one that he felt represented his value to the team. When it came to Adams, he wanted to be with his former quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, and there was almost nothing that could have tempted him away. Then Kirk broke his collarbone just before the trade could be finalized.
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Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams.
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