The Pittsburgh Steelers are preparing to be without star wide receiver George Pickens against the Philadelphia Eagles this week, HC Mike Tomlin confirmed in his weekly Tuesday press conference.
Though Tomlin hasn’t officially ruled him out, he shared that, “If you pressed me, I’d probably say he’s out or could be characterized as doubtful.” — a sign that he’s unlikely to go if we’re analyzing the Steelers’ cautious approach to injuries so far this season.
Tomlin said that Pickens initially experienced hamstring discomfort on Thursday, which led to his limited participation in Friday’s practice. Though the team had a plan to utilize Pickens on crucial downs if he were to be limited in any way come Sunday, the decision was made to leave him inactive for Week 14.
“When we got to the stadium, it was evident that maybe the circumstance was a little bit more significant than we hoped, and so we made the prudent decision in terms of shutting him down and not allowing a small problem to become a bigger one.” Tomlin shared that the injury did show up on an MRI, and it was “more significant” than what they had expected. Reports on Monday indicated that he had been diagnosed with a grade 2 hamstring injury.
The team will play three games in a span of 10 days thanks to a wonky schedule and Christmas game, including matchups against the Philadelphia Eagles, Baltimore Ravens and the Kansas City Chiefs between December 15 and December 25. It seems likely that the condensed scheduling could be a component of the team’s decision, especially just one game out from a guaranteed playoff berth with a win this week OR Colts loss/tie and a Dolphins loss/tie, plus a two-game lead in the AFC North.
With a full week of practice holding the knowledge of Pickens’ likely absence, it seems likely that this is the week we’ll see an increased role for trade deadline acquisition WR Mike Williams to take on an increased role — if he ever does.