The most noteworthy NFL-related development of the second week of May involved the Pittsburgh Steelers trading mercurial wide receiver George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys.
While speaking with reporters on Friday, Steelers general manager Omar Khan reflected on Pickens' tenure with the organization that ran from 2022 through this past season.
"I wouldn't use the word disappointment," Khan said about Pickens' Pittsburgh tenure, per Brooke Pryor of ESPN. "You know we had three years with George, and you know we had some exciting times, but you know, it's just time for the fresh start. For both sides, it was the right thing."
Steelers insider Mark Kaboly of "The Pat McAfee Show" and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk previously reported that head coach Mike Tomlin was the person within the Steelers who decided that "the Pickens rehabilitation project needed to end a year early" because this saga "wasn’t going to end with Pickens signing a second (or third) contract and becoming one of the all-time franchise greats."
Pickens is in the final year of his rookie deal.
Just this past December, Tomlin publicly said that Pickens needed to "grow up" after the 24-year-old was flagged twice for unsportsmanlike conduct during Pittsburgh's Week 13 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. Later that month, Pickens reportedly showed up late for the Steelers' Christmas Day game against the Kansas City Chiefs. His last official act as a Steelers player occurred when he hinted following the club's playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens that he wasn't optimistic about the future of Pittsburgh's offense.
A 2022 second-round draft pick, Pickens recorded 174 receptions for 2,841 yards and 12 touchdowns over 48 games (40 starts). Once the Steelers signed DK Metcalf to a five-year contract worth $150M as part of acquiring him from the Seattle Seahawks earlier this offseason, Pickens became surplus to requirements in Pittsburgh.
"We wouldn't have done this if we didn't feel good about the receiver situation, about our depth here," Khan added about trading Pickens during his comments.
Khan also acknowledged he could pursue a possible trade for an advertised WR2 if doing so "makes sense" for the Steelers. Stories have linked Pittsburgh with Allen Lazard of the New York Jets and Romeo Doubs of the Green Bay Packers, two receivers who have experience catching passes thrown by free-agent quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
On Friday morning, Mike DeFabo of The Athletic mentioned that it seems the Steelers "believe Rodgers will eventually sign and are willing to give him plenty of time to do so."
