George Pickens wastes Antonio Brown-level talent against the Bengals, and Steelers know it

The Pittsburgh Steelers know how to develop wide receivers. Unfortunately, they tend to struggle with handling their personalities. George Pickens is a classic example.

As great as Pickens is on the field, he gets in his own way after the play. This was on full display against Cincinnati on Sunday. Pittsburgh lost to the Cleveland Browns in their last game on Thursday Night Football. A second straight loss to a losing team would raise some questions, and it's very much in play thanks in part to Pickens.

Pickens had two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties to his name as of the third quarter. The first was taunting, while the second wasn't worthy of disqualification, thankfully. Pickens spoke with the media earlier this week so he wouldn't get fined, which showed a surprising amount of maturity. Just a few days later, Pickens cemented his wallet's fate with another penalty by punting the ball into the stands.

George Pickens deserves criticism for terrible Steelers penalties

Don't worry, that's not the end of Pickens day. The star wide receiver caught one of Russell Wilson's patented moonballs, only to get flagged for aiming an imaginary gun at the stands. Yes, I am serious.

In past years, this wouldn't have been called, but the officials have made a sustained effort to get rid of gun imagery in player celebrations. I can respect that, and teams were informed before the start of the season. So...why would Pickens think he could get away with this?

It's been a long season for Pickens after the play. He got in a fight with Cowboys defensive back Jourdan Lewis after the Steelers lost to the Cowboys. He did the same against the Cleveland Browns and Greg Newsome in a blizzard two Thursdays ago. Rather than compete for a possible Hail Mary on the final play of Pittsburgh's loss to Cleveland, Pickens was too busy jawing.

Broderick Jones stepped in on multiple occasions on Sunday to calm Pickens down, as well as Tomlin. At some point, Pickens has to take responsibility for his own actions. This is getting ridiculous.