Where the Steelers offense can improve: with or without George Pickens
There’s some panic in the Steel City this week as the Pittsburgh Steelers prepare for what appears to be an AFC North Championship game against their long-time division rival the Baltimore Ravens. The worries stem from the loss of WR George Pickens over the last couple of weeks and the thought that he’s a necessary component for their offense’s sustained success.
While having a playmaking receiver can never hurt, the Steelers can focus on other areas of their offense, where they have been successful, and use those key elements to help maintain the pace with upcoming opponents – whether that’s with or without Pickens in the lineup.
Here are some of those areas.
Russell Wilson
Please make no mistake about it: Russell Wilson is what makes the Steelers offense tick.
When Justin Fields was the Steelers starting quarterback through the team’s first six games of the season, the team polished off a 4-2 record. However, they mainly achieved this success by limiting opponents to 20 or fewer points. The defense allowed, on average, 14.3 points per game over that six-game span.
The offense, however, struggled as well, averaging 20.7 points per game, failing to score more than 20 points in four of those six games.
Once Wilson took the reigns as the starting quarterback, things changed. Before the Philadelphia game, the Steelers’ offense averaged 28.4 points per game with Wilson. The offense’s total yards upticked to 372 (up from 298) with the passing game being the biggest beneficiary, jumping to 239 yards on average, up from 167.
The Steelers also scored 26 points or more in five of the seven games Wilson started, including a season-high 44 against the Bengals.
Pickens in the Pre-Wilson Era
One of the biggest things to highlight in determining how key George Pickens is to the Steelers offense is how he performed before and after Russell Wilson became the starting quarterback.
Would you like to know how many touchdown receptions Pickens had with Fields as the starting quarterback? It was zero.
With Wilson, Pickens has had three touchdown catches to date, but its the volume of explosive plays that track better under Wilson than Fields. Averaging nearly seven catches per game with both passers, Pickens has a larger average of yards per game (81 to 60) and yards-per-catch (17.8 to 13.7).
Of course, you cannot understate Pickens’ importance on the field. Yet, there are other players who are quietly making strides.
Other receiving options
Pickens adds big plays when on the field, but we can also sense that Wilson is the major reason the offense was on the rise when looking at some of the Steelers other receivers.
One of those beneficiaries is TE Pat Freiermuth, who has caught four of his six touchdown passes from Wilson, including one in each of his last three games. Freiermuth also has four games with an 11 yards-per-reception or more average with Wilson under center versus only a single game with Fields.
Calvin Austin has also launched into being a potential secondary threat in the offense under Wilson, snagging three touchdown catches (versus one) with the veteran quarterback. Austin has also made big plays in the “Wilson era” of the 2024 season, with receptions of 36, 29, 46, and 31 yards. (He had one 30-yard-plus catch with Fields on a quick slant against the Chargers that went for 55.)
Needless to say, one way the Steelers can improve without Pickens is find Austin and Freiermuth.
Mike Williams
Williams has been more absent than he should be after joining the Steelers in Week 10 against the Washington Commanders. Since, the veteran big-play threat has been anything but. Williams caught a key game-winning touchdown in his first action, but has been shutout in games against the Ravens, Browns, and Bengals.
He popped back on the stat sheet after Pickens was injured and ruled out in the second Browns game, catching three passes for 36 yards, but like the rest of the offense, Williams failed against Philly with a lone catch of 15 yards.
The Steelers will need his presence to grow, regardless if Pickens is on the field, in order to continue offensive momentum through their final games.
Rushing Game
The Steelers rushing game is another area the team can lean on to help aide their offense.
Those who are looking at the Eagles game and its failures can point directly to Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren as part of the problem. Each back had a terrible average on Sunday, with Harris rushing six times for 14 yards and Warren adding four for 12.
The poor performance was the team’s worst run game output of the season with 56 yards total: 21 of those yards came from the quarterbacks including an eight-yard designed run by Fields.
That total is only the second time this season the Steelers failed to rush for at least 100 yards as a team in a game. (The other being a loss to the Dallas Cowboys.) Arthur Smith’s offense is designed to work off of a run-first mentality. When the offense cannot gain significant yards on first or second down by running the ball, it puts them in a third-and-long situation instead of third-and-manageable.
The ability to eat clock by running the football is also a major component to keeping the Steelers defense rested on the sidelines. Against Philadelphia, the lack of meaningful possessions was a killer for Pittsburgh’s D. The offense had four different drives stall with three-and-outs, punting each time whereas the Eagles punted once the entire game.
If the Steelers are to contend for a championship they’ll need to refocus on dominating the line of scrimmage and attacking with their backs. This also includes the pass game, especially without Pickens in the lineup.
Harris and Warren were only targeted three times throughout the game. Compare that to feasting on the Bengals defense in Week 13, where Harris caught six passes for 54 yards and Warren added four catches for 55. That’s over 100 yards of production that can help the Steelers offense move the chains more frequently and help shoulder the blow of not having Pickens on the field too.
