George Pickens butting heads with Steelers position coach?
Sep 18, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens (14) smiles on the field before the game against the New England Patriots at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The Pittsburgh Steelers are just a few days into training camp and already there seems to be trouble brewing with wide receiver George Pickens.
During the team’s very first practice, Pickens and newly-hired wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni got into a heated exchange, reports Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
“It happened on the second-to-last play of practice,” Fittipaldo said on the North Shore Drive Podcast. “Zach Azzanni, the new receivers coach, did not like the way that George Pickens executed his assignment on that play and he let him know about it.”
Pickens has been handled with kid gloves since being selected in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, but Azzanni clearly brings a different approach. The stark contrast and lack of coddling apparently caught Pickens off guard, and he wasn’t too enthused about it.
“In that exchange. . . George Pickens didn’t seem like he was very coachable. At the very least, he didn’t seem like he liked the way he was being addressed by Zach Azzanni,” Fittipaldo said, adding that Pickens was “visibly upset.”
Pickens is no stranger to questions about his character and effort. Those two red flags have plagued him dating back to college and it’s part of the reason he slipped to the Steelers in the second round. Those same concerns bubbled to the surface last season when Pickens seemingly showed a lack of effort while also having a few blow-ups on the sideline.
It’s exactly that type of behavior the Steelers have attempted to cleanse themselves of, moving on from wide receiver Diontae Johnson and quarterback Kenny Pickett this offseason. So, if Pickens can’t coexist with his new position coach or find a way to mature, he could be the next player sent packing.
