Steelers insider expands on latest George Pickens controversy

For an article published on Tuesday, The Athletic's Mike DeFabo mentioned that Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens showed up at Acrisure Stadium "late for the Christmas Day game against the Kansas City Chiefs."

"[Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin] asks players to report to games at least two hours before kickoff," DeFabo explained. "On Dec. 25, Pickens walked through the media entrance an hour and 25 minutes before kickoff. That was after inactive players were announced."

It appears that wasn't a one-off for Pickens. 

"Basically players kind of shrugged it off and they were like, 'Yeah, he's late for practice often. He's late for other things,'" DeFabo said about his Pickens revelation during a Tuesday appearance on Pittsburgh sports radio station 93.7 The Fan, as shared by Alex Kozora of Steelers Depot. "There needs to be a certain level of professionalism and it's just obviously not there." 

Pickens got into "a heated exchange" with a coach during a training-camp practice last summer. He later wrote a profane message on his eye black for a game, grappled with Cleveland Browns cornerback Greg Newsome II during a last-second Hail Mary attempt and then was flagged twice for unsportsmanlike conduct during the Steelers' Week 13 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

More recently, at least one NFL insider suggested Pickens sent a "come get me" message when he briefly interrupted Kansas City stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce during a postgame interview on Christmas Day. Following Pittsburgh's 28-14 wild-card playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens this past Saturday, Pickens indicated he is not optimistic about the future of the Steelers offense. 

Pickens is only signed through the 2025 season, and DeFabo argued in his piece that the Steelers should look to trade the 23-year-old because Pickens' behavior shows that giving him "a hefty extension would be a mistake." DeFabo repeated that point during the radio segment. 

"The Steelers need to be proactive, I believe," DeFabo said. "...I believe that they should get whatever they can in a trade. I think that's the best approach at this point." 

Pittsburgh is expected to hold onto Tomlin, and he didn't hide after the Week 13 game that he felt Pickens needed to "grow up." There's no sign the 2022 second-round draft pick will experience such growth with the Steelers, and it seems both could welcome a separation as soon as when the new league year opens in March.