Former Georgia wide receiver George Pickens quietly had one of the best rookie seasons in the NFL last year.
The Pittsburgh Steelers star caught 52 passes for 801 yards and four scores, despite the offense rotating quarterbacks for part of the season.
Kenny Pickett, who was drafted in the same class as Pickens, looks to be the future in Pittsburgh after finishing out 2022 as the starting quarterback. Pickett spoke highly of Pickens and his talent on a recent appearance on ‘Green Light with Chris Long’.
“George can be a top guy in the league, no doubt,” Pickett said. “There’s probably three catches in practice that stick out to me that were better than ones he had that everyone saw on the season. His natural ability, his floor is so high just based on his natural ability and now we’ve put together a nice route package for him. He continues to work on his game and we work on our continuity together. I’m really excited to play with him going into year two.”
It was plays like this that put the NFL on notice of what George Pickens can do.
🤩 En une saison, George Pickens a déjà des highlights complètement dingues ! #HereWeGo
Le Wide Receiver des @steelers pourra-t-il mener Pittsburgh vers les playoffs en 2023 ? pic.twitter.com/TXvAQkxmuG
— NFL France (@NFLFrance) June 2, 2023
According to @FTNData these WRs were targeted on go routes at the highest rate in the NFL last year:
1) George Pickens: 32.9%
2) Allen Robinson: 26.9%
2) DJ Chark: 26.9%
4) Nico Collins: 22.7%
5) Mike Williams: 22.6%
6) Davante Adams: 21.1%
7) Allen Lazard: 21.0% pic.twitter.com/inhMvOUvUj— Adam Pfeifer (@APfeifer24) July 7, 2023
Pickens’ career at Georgia feels like it came and went too fast. After a sensational freshman season, Pickens missed two games due to injury during the shortened 2020 season and missed 11 games in 2021 due to a torn ACL.
Pickens still managed to help the Bulldogs when they needed him most. The Hoover, Ala., native reeled-in a 52-yard pass and drew a key pass interference penalty in the fourth quarter of the national championship win over Alabama.
With Pickett’s confidence growing into his second season and Pickens healthy, we can expect big things from the former Bulldog in 2023.
