Steelers HC Mike Tomlin Bluntly Addresses George Pickens Issues
PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers are working through attitude issues with George Pickens, and while they're willing to acknowledge it's an issue they need to fix, they aren't giving up on the belief that it will be solved.
As attention started to turn sour toward Pickens after lack of effort during the team's loss to the Indianapolis Colts, and then Pickens acknowledging he chose not to block because he didn't want to risk injury, head coach Mike Tomlin was asked to address the situation.
"George is a talented guy but he's growing and growing in a lot of ways in regards to football and life," Tomlin said. "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."
Tomlin confirmed he and Pickens are meeting on a weekly basis to help Pickens grow professionally, while also admitting Pickens is "very much a work in progress."
"It's not going to be one incident or one meeting or one form of discipline that's going to institute the type of change that we're hunting, to be quite honest with you. It is going to be continual. He is aware of that," Tomlin said. "We meet on a routine basis. We met last Wednesday, he and I, we met again today. And so just wanted to be clear in some of those things.
"I would like him to be more professional in terms of addressing some of his shortcomings with you guys in order to further add fluidity to the process. He's not helping himself, he's not helping the process in the manner in which he has dealt with you guys. But the manner in which he deals with you guys is not necessarily the manner in which he deals with us or himself regarding acknowledging where he is or where he needs to go."
Tomlin confirmed Pickens will play against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 16 and, for now, the expectation is that he will start. That does not impact the team's views on him needing to grow maturity-wise.
"He's got talents, we want to utilize him," Tomlin said on why Pickens will play. "He's very much in growth and development, but it would be the same if we were winning games or if he said appropriate things with you guys yesterday. You guys might have gone away but that wouldn't have made me any more comfortable about the process that he's going through that is ongoing and continual, and will continue to require our attention. I don't respond to momentary bumps, positively or negatively, or things that are going on.
"I'm just acknowledging that it is a process, and I posture based on present circumstance or incidences that occur positively or negatively won't change. We're coming to work every day in that regard just like we're coming to work every day in regards to football. part of it is education and I want him to understand that, as well. When you're winning and doing your jobs a lot of the attention and so forth is that. When you're not doing your job and losing you better keep your damn mouth shut and understand that attracts a certain type of attention as well. Usually that's vulture-like attention."
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