Steelers’ Tomlin calls on George Pickens to ‘grow up’ after flags

Third-year Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens drew the ire of his head coach for drawing two costly unsportsmanlike conduct penalty flags in Sunday’s 44-38 win against the Cincinnati Bengals.

“He’s just got to grow up, man,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “This is an emotional game, man. These divisional games are big. He’s got a target on his back because he’s George, he understands that. But he’s got to grow up. He’s got to grow up in a hurry.”

Pickens, who was also involved in a scuffle with Cleveland Browns cornerback Greg Newsome II during a Hail Mary attempt last week, led the Steelers with 74 yards receiving on three catches with a touchdown, but he drew 15-yard penalties after two of his catches. He also punted the ball into the stands after scoring the 17-yard touchdown in the first quarter, a celebration that could earn him a fine from the NFL.

After the game, Pickens said there wasn’t anything he needed to do differently in those situations.

“No, honestly, like I said, I can just keep running my routes, keep playing,” he said. “We got refs out there to make certain calls for certain penalties, certain flags. If they don’t make it, then I’m pretty sure they’ll take it up [inaudible].”

He added: “To be honest, it was kind of a ticky-tack game, and I’m just glad we came out with the dub.”

Pickens was called for his first unsportsmanlike conduct penalty as he threw the ball down at a gaggle of Bengals defenders after making a 21-yard snag on the third drive of the first quarter. The Steelers were still credited with the first down, but the penalty resulted in just a 6-yard gain.

Then in the third quarter, Pickens was flagged for another unsportsmanlike penalty when he appeared to make a gun-like gesture after a 36-yard gain on a moon ball from Russell Wilson that would have put the Steelers at the 13-yard line.

Instead, the Steelers were backed up to the 28, and after three unsuccessful plays, the team brought out Chris Boswell to try a field goal. Boswell’s kick was blocked — his first ever unsuccessful field goal attempt at Paul Brown Stadium — and the Steelers turned the ball back over to the Bengals with just a six-point lead.

Afterward, Pickens said the official misinterpreted his hand signal.

“They said they got the gesture wrong,” Pickens said. “You know what I mean? Thought it was something else. You can’t hurt the team. I never intended to hurt the team, but he just thought the gesture was different. … I was doing the first down; he stated he thought [it was] something else.”

Though that was Pickens’ second unsportsmanlike flag of the afternoon, he wasn’t disqualified because the action wasn’t directed at the Bengals, referee Shawn Hochuli said in a pool report.

“The rule of two unsportsmanlike conduct fouls for disqualification really applies to taunting-type acts directed towards an opponent,” Hochuli said. “The first of those fouls was of that nature — his first in the first half was a taunt for throwing the ball at the player. On the second, however, it was not directed at an opponent and so it’s not considered a taunt. It’s an unsportsmanlike conduct foul but not considered a taunt that would apply towards disqualification.”

Pickens has been a frequent headline-maker since he was selected by the Steelers in the second round of the 2022 draft, including earlier this season when he was fined for writing an explicit message on his eye black for the Sunday night game against the Dallas Cowboys. In that game, Pickens earned another fine for pulling Cowboys defensive back Jourdan Lewis down by the face mask after the final play. Pickens is also no stranger to altercations in games against the Bengals and was ejected in the final seconds of a 2022 matchup for a late hit on receiver Tyler Boyd during an onside kick attempt.

Pickens was frustrated early in Sunday’s win when he got tangled up with Bengals defensive back Cam Taylor-Britt on the first series and fell to the ground. Taylor-Britt appeared to grab Pickens’ helmet and force him down, but Hochuli said in the pool report it was “incidental contact.”

“We ruled the receiver stumbled right off the line and then there was incidental contact that brought him down,” Hochuli said. “If there was a potential grab or hold, that was at an angle that we wouldn’t have seen.” As a result, Taylor-Britt picked off Wilson’s pass intended for Pickens and returned it for a touchdown while Pickens sat on the field gesturing to the official over the lack of a penalty.

“Plays happen,” Pickens said. “Guys hold me. I’m going to get held. I’m one of the top receivers, so I’m going to get held. You just got to make plays when it happens.”

Asked if he thought officials had a target on his back, Pickens said he hoped not.

“I’m only out here just playing like every other receiver in the league,” Pickens said. “Certain calls don’t go my way. All you can do is just keep playing.”

“He’s just got to grow up, man. This is an emotional game, man. These divisional games are big. He’s got a target on his back because he’s George, he understands that. But he’s got to grow up. He’s got to grow up in a hurry.”

Mike Tomlin, on George Pickens

Offensive lineman Broderick Jones, who spent two years with Pickens at Georgia, tried to calm his teammate down during the game, talking with him intently on the field after the penalties.

“I don’t try and give him a whole speech or whatnot, just a couple words of encouragement or just, ‘Be smart,'” Jones said. “‘Everybody knows you’re a playmaker, we just got to stop the stupid things.’ That’s with me, too, as well. He talks to me as well, so I try and do the same thing for him.

“We just try and keep each other in line and just making sure we have each other’s backs.”

Wilson said he also talked to Pickens during the game about keeping his emotions in check, reminding him on the sideline that he doesn’t have to do anything “extra” after big plays because he’s expected to make them.

“It’s passion, and so sometimes that takes over and I think that just being able to balance it, I thought he did a great job responding,” Wilson said. “And I just think that you just got to understand that when you’re at one of the best receivers in the world, everybody’s going to have their eyes on you, and just you got to understand that just to stay neutral, stay poised in those moments and still bring excitement. Don’t change that but just understand that.

“I was telling him on the sideline when you’re one of the best in the world, you expect to make those plays, and you don’t need to do anything extra necessarily. … He’s learning it as we go. He’s got to be smarter, too, though, and he’s going to do that.”