For the second consecutive year, the Pittsburgh Steelers have traded away a talented wide receiver due to character concerns.
Despite their dearth of talent on the perimeter, the Steelers traded star wide receiver George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys in early May. As the initial shock from the trade settles, details have emerged regarding the Steelers’ decision to part ways with the talented wideout.
Pittsburgh’s locker room was growing weary of Pickens’ antics, Steelers insider Mark Kaboly reported on Monday.
“Significant locker room guys” had grown tired of Pickens “for multiple reasons,” sources reportedly told Kaboly.
Steelers locker room wanted to get rid of George Pickens
Pickens was unquestionably the best player on Pittsburgh’s offense last season. The Steelers were overly reliant on the 24-year-old as they had few reliable receiving threats to accompany him, but he possessed the talent to single-handedly elevate Pittsburgh’s passing attack.
Over the first 12 games of the 2024 season, Pickens helped lead the Steelers to a 10-3 record while compiling 850 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 55 receptions. An injury derailed Pickens’ campaign in Week 13, and the Steelers lost four of their last five games while failing to reach 200 passing yards in any of those contests. Yet, the Steelers locker room still appeared to believe they’d be better off without him.
“Some felt that it would be counterproductive to keep him around, even with his unique talent,” Kaboly wrote. “They felt the locker room could turn toxic.”
Pittsburgh may not have been the only team concerned with Pickens’ character issues. The Steelers struggled to get market value because “not many teams were interested” in acquiring the controversial wide receiver. The Steelers weren’t willing to trade him for less than a third-round pick, which they weren’t offered until after the 2025 NFL Draft in April.
“Not many were broken up within the organization that Pickens got traded,” Kaboly added.
More on the Steelers trading George Pickens to Dallas:
— Mark Kaboly (@MarkKaboly) May 12, 2025
• Significant locker room guys got fed up with Pickens' antics and quickly got turned off by him for multiple reasons, I was told.
• Some felt that it would be counterproductive to keep him around, even with his unique… pic.twitter.com/TXgebUYMV6
After the Steelers traded wide receiver Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers last offseason, reports surfaced that the Steelers were concerned about the negative influence Johnson would have on Pickens. It seems that the blame may have been unfairly pinned on Johnson, as Pittsburgh’s attempt to foster a healthy locker room culture evidently fell short.
The Steelers were aware of Pickens’ character flaws when they selected him with the No. 52 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. Despite his enormous potential, Pickens fell out of the first round due to concerns about his maturity.
The Steelers are no strangers to messy splits with controversial wide receivers. The fourth-year wide receiver became the latest addition to a long list of Pittsburgh wide receivers who were traded due to sideline outbursts, locker room arguments, or off-field issues.