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Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens has been visibly frustrated in recent weeks, and recently made comments about criticism he has been receiving from members of the media.
Well, Pickens’ comments didn’t sit well with head coach Mike Tomlin who directed very strong advice to the young pass catcher.
Tomlin’s advice was simple: “keep your damn mouth shut.”
“George is a talented guy but he’s growing and growing in a lot of ways in regards to football and life,” Tomlin said, via CBS Sports. “We don’t run away from that. We run to that organizationally when we draft guys. We’re committed to being a component of their growth and development in all areas.
“When you’re winning and doing your jobs, a lot of the attention is on things such as that. When you’re not doing your job and losing, you better keep your damn mouth shut and understand that that tracks a certain type of attention, as well. And usually that’s vulture-like attention.”
This season, Pickens has hauled in 52 catches for 814 yards and three touchdowns. Through his first two seasons, the Georgia product has 104 catches for 1,615 yards and seven touchdowns.
Perhaps Tomlin was just trying to light a fire under Pickens for the final few weeks of the season, because the second-year pro will start against the Cincinnati Bengals in a key AFC matchup this weekend.
The Steelers and Bengals are set to take the field on Saturday, December 23 at 4:30 p.m. ET.
