Let’s take a look at the redraft and dynasty fantasy football impact of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ selection of George Pickens.
Team Drafted: Pittsburgh Steelers
Pick Selected: Round 2, No. 52 overall
2022 Redraft Fantasy Football Outlook
The Pittsburgh Steelers selected George Pickens at pick No. 52, with WR3 an area of need and Diontae Johnson slated for free agency in 2023. I absolutely love the fit for Pickens here with the Steelers, who seem to never miss selecting wideouts on Day 2.
It remains to be seen how much Pickens will do as a rookie competing for targets alongside Johnson, Chase Claypool, and Pat Freirermuth, but his long-term outlook with future franchise quarterback Kenny Pickett looks bright.
The Georgia Bulldog WR broke out as a true 18-year-old freshman, finishing 2019 as PFF’s the 17th-highest-graded receiver in the nation (88.0) – ahead of future NFL wideouts like Jerry Jeudy, Justin Jefferson, DeVonta Smith, and Jaylen Waddle.
His 2.64 Yards per route run were identical to Jefferson’s. George Pickens’ unbelievable first year generated a 27% dominator rating – the No. 1 age-adjusted mark among the WRs in this draft class.
And it’s so clear that Pickens plays with a dog mentality. Part of his highlight tape is him putting opposing cornerbacks on the ground in the run game. Mike Tomlin is going to love that.
Injuries and off-field issues plagued Pickens’ draft stock, but he looks fully healthy based on his testing at the NFL Combine. And Pittsburgh seems like the right spot for him to get his head on straight.
I will be drafting a lot of Pickens in my dynasty rookie drafts with his future looking bright. Redraft will be tougher sell based on target competition and question marks at quarterback. Likely will need an injury ahead of him.
Initial redraft ranking: WR61
2022 NFL Draft Profile
Pickens gets pegged as a deep threat because of his height, speed (71st percentile), and career yards per reception (17.8, 85th percentile), but that’s not the area of the field where he succeeds at the highest rate. While Pickens can stretch a defense (we’ll discuss that later), he’s more inconsistent in this area. Pickens is a better route runner and separator in the short and intermediate areas of the field. This can be seen below, as he’s in the 60th percentile or higher in Yards per route run at 0-19 yards, but when he goes deep, he’s not nearly as efficient as other FBS wide receivers.
| Among FBS wide receivers with 50 or more targets (Statistics via PFF): | ||
| Year | Formation alignment Slot / Wide | Yards per route run (rank) |
| 2019 | 11.1% / 88.9% | 2.64 (44th of 290) |
| 2020 | 8.8% / 91.2% | 1.93 (87th of 146) |
| 2021 | 2.9% / 97.1% | 3.34* |
*Only 9 targets
Pickens displays loose hips and suddenness in his breaks on short and intermediate routes. He has no issues making a corner look silly on a comeback. This is impressive considering his size, but he has no problem sinking his hips and gearing down. NFL teams should look to utilize him in these areas more and not pigeonhole him as a vertical threat.
| Yards per route run among FBS wide receivers with 14 or more targets at each depth (Statistics via PFF): |
||
| Depth | 2019 season (Percentile) | 2020 season (Percentile) |
| 20+ yards | 11.38 (33rd) | 11.2 (30th) |
| 10-19 yards | 11.4 (81st) | 11.5 (66th) |
| 0-9 yards | 6.9 (60th) | 7.2 (63rd) |
The problems that Pickens run into come on vertical routes. His play strength can be inconsistent at best. He can flash dominant and #arroganthands, plucking the ball out of the air on one snap. His upside can easily be seen when watching his 2020 game against Missouri. He flashed strength through contact with good deep-ball tracking despite a corner hanging all over him and being flagged for interference. Pickens has also put plenty of reps on film of losing battles to smaller corners. These catch point lapses led to a 47.1% contested catch rate overall (per PFF) and a 23.5% rate on deep targets. His play-strength shortcomings also rear their ugly head with his paltry 3.5 yards after the catch per reception in college (per PFF).
Some of these situations he finds himself in are a product of his route running. Pickens relies on his impressive physical gifts, but he still needs to add nuance to his routes and consistently stack corners. He has no problems getting separation early or off the line on many snaps, only to find the corner inside or on him like glue. His 2020 contest against Alabama was a perfect example of this. He was held to seven targets, five receptions, and 53 scoreless yards. While he is fast for his size, Pickens doesn’t possess an elite second gear to outrun corners.
While Pickens has some of the best raw gifts in this draft class, he’s still far from a finished product. He’s a home run swing for an NFL team, entering the league with a roller-coaster profile that leaves more questions than answers after his 2021 injury. This could result in a swing and a miss if Pickens can’t connect the rest of the dots.
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