Steelers WR George Pickens is now a hostage, not a volunteer
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens went through a rolling mountain of emotions after a negative one-yard performance on Thursday Night Football.
On Friday, Pickens removed all Steelers stuff from his Instagram account and posted a meme with the words “release me.” Now some of the images are back and the meme has been removed.
But the meme got me thinking: As Mike Tomlin’s old saying goes, he wants volunteers, not hostages. And set me free definitely sounds like words a hostage would use.
From Le’Veon Bell to Antonio Brown to Chase Claypool to Melvin Ingram, Tomlin has refused many hostages in his 17-year career. Something tells me he’ll stick with it as long as he produces. And it’s clear the Steelers need to figure out a way to do it more consistently.
Pickens seems to be happy when things are going well. But when he’s not looking, he’s making a scene. Typical wide receiver functions. Every time Tomlin deprives the team of a me-first receiver, he creates another. It’s cyclical, just like a player’s attitude.