Steelers take George Pickens in 2022 NFL Draft: Fantasy Football and Dynasty outlooks, scouting report, more
Pickens #Pickens
George Pickens landed with the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 52nd overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. Pickens joins Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool, which could make things tough early but Pickens has as much upside as either of them.
Pickens’ upside is evident in his highlight reel. The lanky speedster consistently makes the types of plays that offensive coordinators and quarterbacks alike dream of. His height and his speed combine to make him a lethal threat down the field and in the red zone. The fact that he produced so immediately as a 19-year-old in the SEC tells you just how special he’s always been as a prospect.
Pickens’ floor shows up in everything else. That long frame shows the potential to put on size, but as things stand right now, he may not be strong enough to battle NFL corners or safeties. And that 19-year-old season was the best of Pickens’ college career. The fact that he recovered from a torn ACL in time to play four games in 2021 is impressive, but he also didn’t produce like the same player after that.
Pickens profile and upside could be enough for a team to reach into Round 1 for him, but just don’t take that to mean that he suddenly has become a safe prospect. At the same time, if he somehow falls into Round 3, don’t let that discourage you about his upside.
Age as of Week 1: 21 | Height: 6-3 | Weight: 195 | 40 time: 4.47
Comparable body-type: Robby Anderson with longer arms
Fantasy outlook
The fit in Pittsburgh, at least from a redraft perspective, is a tough one. Pickens will have to battle Johnson, Claypool, Najee Harris, and Pat Freiermuth and he will likely play with a below average quarterback in either Mitchell Trubisky or rookie Kenny Pickett. If Pickens can displace Claypool as the No. 2 wide receiver in the offense he could have flex appeal in the second half of the season. That’s probably not worth a draft pick in a standard-sized league.
Dynasty outlook
Pickens has the long-term upside of a top-12 Dynasty and redraft wide receiver, and this move doesn’t harm that. If he hits his ceiling, neither Claypool or Johnson will get in the way of his target share. And he has a chance to grow with a rookie quarterback in Kenny Pickett. Initially, Pickett comes in as a borderline WR3 in Dynasty leagues, worth a pick around pick 12 in rookie-only drafts. I prefer him to first-round pick Jahan Dotson.
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Scouting report Strengths
Concerns
Stats breakdown
G
REC
YDS
AVG
TD
2021
4
5
107
21.4
0
2020
8
36
513
14.3
6
2019
12
49
727
14.8
8
Total
24
90
1,347
15.0
14 Advanced stats to know
NFL comparison
It’s hard to find a perfect comp because of Pickens’ size/speed combination and lack of production. But Robby Anderson seems good for an expectation, at least. We saw Anderson as a pure deep threat early in his career and a boom-or-bust Fantasy option. He earned more volume as time went on, but he never quite hit the ceiling he could have. Pickens has more upside than Anderson certainly, but there’s no guarantee he’ll hit it.