Mike Tomlin has no 'outlying issue' with the effort of Steelers WR George Pickens

Mike Tomlin was aware — and not pleased — that George Pickens grabbed a Dallas Cowboys player by the facemask and sent him to the ground in the aftermath of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ last-second 20-17 loss Sunday night.

He did not know about the expletive that was written on Pickens’ eye black tape at the beginning of the game.

And he has no concerns about the hustle Pickens displayed against Dallas on a night when the third-year receiver played the lowest percentage of offensive snaps in his career.

“I didn’t have any outlying issue with his effort,” Tomlin said Tuesday at his weekly news conference.

Pickens appeared to run half-heartedly on some of his routes during the game. He also missed a third-down pass along the Steelers’ sideline that went through his fingers, which prompted Tomlin to throw his hands in the air.

At another point, Pickens exited the field and angrily slammed his helmet to the ground, another demonstration of frustration that didn’t go unnoticed by his head coach.

“There are things I’m open to addressing and will do,” Tomlin said. “I just don’t detail it in settings like this because it’s business between he and I in terms of his growth and development as a player and man.”

Pickens’ worst offense came after the game. As Cowboys cornerback Jourdan Lewis was running by Pickens after securing the ball following a series of desperation laterals on the final play, Pickens grabbed Lewis by the facemask. Lewis went to the ground. As he entered the Cowboys locker room, Lewis called Pickens “weak.”

“I am aware of that,” Tomlin said regarding the facemask incident, which likely will result in a fine from the NFL. “That has been and will be addressed. I was not aware of the messaging.”

Pickens had inscribed the words “Open (Expletive) Always” on his eye-black tape, which was picked up by the NBC cameras and quickly circulated across social media. Pickens has skipped out on his postgame media responsibilities, declining any interview requests.

Earlier in the season, Tomlin thought Pickens would handle the attention of a No. 1 receiver positively, and he was asked Tuesday whether he still feels that way.

“In those instances, no,” he said. “Largely, there has been an improvement in those areas.”

Pickens’ maturity has come into question several times in his career. In December, he was criticized for not blocking on a running play at the goal line, with Pickens saying he didn’t want to risk an injury.

Pickens never has been disciplined by sitting out a game, but perhaps Tomlin was trying to get his receiver’s attention by limiting his snaps against the Cowboys. A week after losing a fumble inside the 5-yard line in a loss at Indianapolis, Pickens played just 34 snaps — or 59% of all offensive plays, a career low. Van Jefferson and Calvin Austin, who each have just eight receptions, played more snaps.

Tomlin, though, provided a similar explanation to the one he gave postgame about Pickens’ reduced playing time, saying he wanted to manage the snaps “in an effort to be more productive. We do it across a lot of positions when you look at the totality of a 17-game schedule.”

Pickens never played fewer than 75% of the snaps in a game last season when he led the NFL by averaging 18.1 yards per catch and had a team-high 1,140 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

This year, Pickens is averaging 13.5 yards per catch. He leads the Steelers with 310 receiving yards but has yet to score a touchdown.

Against the Cowboys, Pickens caught three of seven targets for 26 yards. It was his second-fewest number of catches and fewest yardage total in five games this season.

“We’re going to keep working and not make a big deal out of it,” Tomlin said about the lack of big plays produced this season. “We feel we’re in the right neighborhood, and we’re knocking on the right doors. Sometimes getting the desired result doesn’t mean change, it means continued focus and that’s where I am with the explosion play discussions.”