Mike Tomlin’s latest George Pickens excuse says a lot about Steelers' Russell Wilson plan

Christmas Day was anything but merry for the Pittsburgh Steelers and not just because it felt like the locker room was warring with itself in the aftermath. The on-field product ultimately led to that, though, with Russell Wilson leading a lifeless offensive performance that was the main reason the Steelers suffered a 29-10 loss and squandered any control of the AFC North race.

One of the worst moments of the loss came early on when the Steelers had an opportunity to convert a drive and trim the lead to one possession to keep things within reach. Instead, Wilson threw an ugly interception to Justin Reid that started a snowball effect and kept Pittsburgh at arm's length from the Chiefs.

That play, even though he wasn't targeted, put the mercurial George Pickens into the crossfire on social media as he seemed to bail on his route, which allowed Reid to cheat into coverage and make the pick. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, however, saw it differently.

On Monday, Tomlin was asked about the interception and specifically Pickens' contributions to the negative play, but the head coach maintained that his receiver had "zero" influence on Wilson throwing the pick, per Nick Farabaugh of Penn Live.

There's a lot to unpack with that admission, most of which pertains to the difference in how Tomlin and the Steelers clearly view Pickens and Wilson.

Mike Tomlin's latest defense of George Pickens doesn't bode well for Russell Wilson

Pickens, although often a headache with his on-field antics, is a bonafide WR1 in this league. He's a force multiplier for the passing offense, which we've seen keenly with how much the offense has struggled through the air when he's been out of action. And Tomlin has become a master of dealing with proverbial "problem-child" receivers in Pittsburgh, so propping up his No. 1 guy makes perfect sense given that they surely believe he's part of the long-term future.

The insinuation that Pickens had nothing to do with the interception on Christmas, however, puts that blame almost squarely on Wilson for a poor decision and throw. And that's where things get tricky.

Pittsburgh obviously acquired Wilson for pennies on the dollar this offseason as the Broncos continued to pay out his salary after releasing the veteran quarterback. That calculus changes massively this coming offseason, however, when Wilson will be a free agent eyeing a far more expensive contract. It remains to be seen if the Steelers are willing to pony up for that.

However, if Tomlin is already nitpicking his quarterback like this, that could be a sign where at least the head coach is leaning. Would he prefer to bring back Justin Fields on a cheaper deal, especially when the offense was still doing enough to win before Wilson was healthy enough to take over as the starter? Does Tomlin believe that Wilson isn't doing enough, particularly as he struggles down the stretch, to warrant the price tag he'll likely demand this offseason? Again, this excuse for Pickens makes that seem possible.

When you couple this with the fact that defenders are questioning one another's effort, things aren't trending in a very positive direction for the Steelers going into the playoffs. But the questions that comments like this raise about Russ and his future in Pittsburgh only further add to the drama this organization will have to navigate in the coming months.