INDIANAPOLIS —It's a critical year for Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens , and the end result of what will transpire this offseason remains uncertain, but despite a lot of chatter this offseason , the Steelers are not actively shopping their young star receiver, team and league sources told Steelers Now at the 2025 NFL Combine.
Pickens is entering the final season of his rookie contract in 2025, a time when most players begin talks with the team on a contract extension. The Steelers do not appear to be excited about the prospects of shelling out big money for long-term deal with Pickens at this point, with team sources citing his habitual tardiness, inconsistent effort and repeated penalties as reasons the Steelers are hesitant to make such a deal.
But while internal discussions have been had about the proper direction moving forward, and there are undoubtedly some within the building that would prefer to move on from Pickens, the team is not actively pursuing such a move at this time.
The Steelers have acknowledged that adding to the wide receiver room this offseason is a significant priority, and that the group they ran with last year did not get the job done.
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receivers Van Jefferson and George Pickens and receivers coach Zach Azzanni at training camp on Aug. 6, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
"It's obviously a priority," general manager Omar Khan said last week . "I'm not going to run from that. It's just the reality. We have some guys that are free agents, and we weren't good enough at that position. So we'll look at everything."
The major reason the Steelers have decided not to seek a trade for Pickens at this point, according to team sources, is a lack of faith in their ability to both trade Pickens and upgrade the wide receivers group overall, in the face of a very slim free agent market and draft class that is thinner than most have been at the position lately.
That could change, depending on what transpires with Pickens this offseason, assuming that he and the Steelers do not come to an agreement on a long-term deal.
Pickens could hold out, or attempt to hold in, as several other Steelers players have done before, and Brandon Aiyuk did with the San Francisco 49ers last season.
The Steelers have generally been accepting of such a negotiating tactic, but to this point, it has always happened in situations where they eventually signed the player, such as with T.J. Watt , Diontae Johnson and Minkah Fitzpatrick .
It's unclear what the result of such a move would be if the Steelers are intransigent in refusing to agree to an extension with Pickens this offseason.
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