After the Steelers beat the Browns in Week 14 without the help of wide receiver George Pickens, head coach Mike Tomlin said that the team has strong confidence in their other wideouts and that those outside the organization should believe the Steelers when they say that.
Tomlin said on Tuesday that Pickens, who has a hamstring injury, is likely to miss this week’s game against the Eagles as well and he reiterated that he is “just so high on the collective” the team has at the position. Tomlin spent more time talking specifically about Mike Williams, who caught a touchdown in his Steelers debut on November 10 and then went three games without a catch before hauling in three balls against the Browns.
Tomlin said “keep watching” when asked about Williams taking on a bigger role.
“I view it only as a matter of time before his presence gets felt in a more consistent way in stadium,” Tomlin said, via the team’s website. “Practice has been like that for a number of weeks, and usually when you see people making plays in practice, it’s a precursor to them making plays in stadium. And so with George, available or not, I expect the overall trajectory of his performance and inclusion in performance to be on the incline.”
The Eagles have one of the stingiest defenses in the league, so the Steelers may need several offensive players to step up their games in order to pull out a win this weekend. Given the Pickens situation, Williams is somewhere near the top of the list.
