Joey Porter Jr. reacts to George Pickens unbelievable practice catch
Pittsburgh Steelers receiver George Pickens went viral during practice Tuesday after making a one-handed, leaping grab over rookie cornerback Joey Porter Jr.
Pickens immediately jumped to his feet and tossed the ball to Porter, who then gave it back to the wideout as he continued celebrating. Porter played tight coverage throughout the rep, playing physically with Pickens at the line of scrimmage and during the course of his route. But when the ball was in the air, Pickens made an incredible adjustment and an outstanding one-handed finish to come out on top with the ball.
Speaking with the media after practice, Porter said he had no idea how Pickens came down with the ball from quarterback Kenny Pickett.
“I don’t know how he caught it,” Porter said, via Mark Kaboly of The Athletic. “We are teammates, so we want the best out of each other at the end of the day. We are going to talk a little, but it is never going to be past that point.”
The Steelers selected Porter with the No. 32 pick of the 2023 NFL Draft. He’ll be looking to follow in the footsteps of his father, Joey Porter Sr., after he impressed in his final season at Penn State, allowing just just 15 catches for 143 yards in coverage last season, according to PFF, adding 27 tackles and 11 pass breakups.
Kenny Pickett says George Pickens has improved his route running
Pickens, on the other hand, is looking to improve upon his impressive rookie season with the Steelers after leading the team in touchdown receptions in 2022. He finished the season with 52 receptions for 801 yards and four scores, making numerous highlight play catches and blocks throughout the season.
After Tuesday’s practice, the first with pads on, Pickett praised Pickens for taking strides in his route running.
“He’s definitely worked on his routes,” Pickett said. “The full route tree he has, the crispness with his routes. He’s locked in mentally. He’s doing a good job learning the system and playing different spots, so we can move him around more, which is great.”
The former Georgia standout said this past Friday he expects the offense to be more vertical in 2023, a welcome change from what was a mostly stagnant offense last season.
With Pickett under center in 2022 (12 starts), the Steelers ranked 32nd in the NFL in passing yards per attempt. Additionally, Pickett sat 32nd in the league in passer rating and dead last in touchdown-to-interception ratio (among 33 qualified quarterbacks).
“That’s more of an explosive hint,” Pickens said. “Like, we’re gonna probably take more shots this year. Try to mix it up a little bit.”