*The Pittsburgh Steelers’ three-game losing streak isn’t gaining them any new friends as the team and head coach Mike Tomlin are catching major heat from sports fans.
While George Pickens has been a valuable asset for the team, the wide receiver’s recklessness has made a critic out of Shannon Sharpe. So much so that the NFL former tight end is holding Tomlin responsible for not holding Pickens and his fellow Steelers accountable for their unacceptable behavior on the field. Referencing the latest show of disrespect, Yardbarker.com noted the latest show of disrespect via Warren admitting to “taking a play off to avoid an injury.”
The play in question occurred during the Steelers’ Week 15 game against the Indianapolis Colts. Instead of scoring a touchdown-saving block on a run play by Jaylen Warren, Pickens opted to give up halfway through the play.
As a result, defender Pickens was on tackled Warren with no problem. Reacting to what happened Tomlin defended Pickens’ disregard for the Steelers, stating he is too valuable to the team to consider benching him.
“AB [Antonio Brown] got rewarded, you never reward negative behavior, you don’t run the risk because it’s no longer ‘The standard is the standard,’ that is the standard. BS’ing. That is the standard for the Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver core,” a furious Sharpe said during an appearance on ESPN’s “First Take.” In his eyes, Tomlin is setting a harmful standard by not punishing Warren, one that may cause other players on his roster to think they can get away with reckless behavior.
“That is why they’re going through what they’re going through. Because Mike Tomlin has shown you, he has told you what the standard is. If you can play, it doesn’t matter what you do on the field.”
With Pickens regularly engaging in unacceptable behavior without penalty, Sharpe further dug into Tomlin, noting how it is never a good thing for players to put themselves before their team’s success. In other
“You can boo a drive, you can drop balls, you can go half-hearted. I’m gonna put you in the game because I believe your talent demands that I do so. What’s the incentive to make them do what they should, if they’re going to play regardless,” Sharpe said.
Tomlin’s lack of meaningful discipline for his players is exactly why the Steelers are faced with repeated problems, according to Sharpe, who noted Tomlin’s lack of effort to put a stop to his players’ self-destructiveness.
Like Sharpe, Yardbarker is aware of Pickens and his value to the Steelers. While he has factored into plays that have resulted in wins for the team, the site knows that there will come a certain point where Tomlin will have to think long-term in doing what’s good for the team, i.e., benching and punishing players for on the field actions not benefitting the Steelers.
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