Steelers Rookie Receiver Impressing

The George Pickens hype train has left the station. Finally, after an instantly iconic draft night and weeks of impressive training camp reports, the rookie receiver took the field for the Pittsburgh Steelers this past Saturday night against the Seattle Seahawks. The results? Three catches, 43 yards, one touchdown, and a PFF Team of the Week award.   

Drafted with the 52nd pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Pickens has captured the imaginations of fans everywhere. He burst onto the college scene as a freshman at Georgia in 2019, earning an All-SEC Freshman Team nod with 727 yards and 8 touchdowns. However, injuries and attitude issues derailed his promising start, and he would fail to match that production across his following three seasons with the Bulldogs. The Steelers hope to help Pickens pick up where he left off all those years ago.

Photo Credit: © Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports 

The Steelers have a long history of developing quality players at wide receiver. Under former General Manager Kevin Colbert, who retired following this year's draft, Pittsburgh saw a near-constant stream of stars at the position. Antonio Brown has a case for the Hall of Fame, Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress were Super Bowl heroes, and Mike Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders, and Juju Smith-Shuster all made Pro Bowls at various points in their careers. Fans in the Steel City are already salivating at the possibility of Pickens, one of Colbert's final draft picks, carrying on the tradition.

Photo Credit: © Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports