The Pittsburgh Steelers have been going through a bit of an offensive drought of late, struggling over the last five weeks since their first meeting with the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13. In three of those weeks, the team was without its star wide receiver George Pickens, who was dealing with a hamstring injury, so the production wasn’t exactly unexpected. Still, the lack of improvement in the two games following his return is understandably worrying fans.

In his two games since returning from injury, Pickens has caught just four of his 13 targets for 50 yards, including a goose egg in Week 18 – interestingly, his first goose egg since Week 18 of the season 2023 season. He and Russell Wilson disagreed. The connection they had in the deep passing game just didn’t look the same anymore.

Anything else that didn’t look the same? Pickens’ average route speed over the last two weeks; They are lower than his average over the course of the season. Is there a possibility that he is not completely healthy yet?

Courtesy of NFL Next Gen Stats, here’s a look at Pickens’ route data from the last two weeks compared to his average in the 12 games prior.

• Average speed at the destination point: 10.96 MPH (Weeks 1-13), 10.01 MPH (Weeks 17-18)
• Line speed at 1s: 7.83 MPH, 7.42 MPH
• Line speed at 2s: 12.56 MPH, 12.05 MPH
• Maximum line speed: 13.93 MPH, 13.18 MPH

It is possible that the reduced average speed is purely a coincidence. However, it is worth noting that hamstring injuries can be quite difficult. Therefore, it wouldn’t necessarily be a surprise to think that he may not have been at his full potential over the last two weeks despite his return to the lineup.

Another strange tidbit regarding Pickens’ usage in Week 18, when he went without a catch – according to Next Gen Stats, he played 100% of his snaps off the field – not a single snap from the slot. This is the first time in his career (regular or postseason) that Next Gen has posted a 100 percent snap rate across the board. Strange indeed.

Regardless of Pickens’ health, it’s abundantly clear that this team plays the way Pickens goes. His success is an integral part of the team’s offensive success, and if he and Russell Wilson can’t resolve their chemistry issues, the team’s postseason hopes will end pretty quickly. The good news, at least, is that Pickens is another week away from injury and can hopefully make a big wild card jump.