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Prospect Preview: George Pickens

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Position: WR

College: Georgia

Height: 6’ 3”

Weight: 195lbs

Age: 21

247 Rating: 0.9880 (5 Stars)

By: Nate Christian (@NateNFL)

The Rundown:

Coming off an incredible recovery from a torn ACL, Pickens didn’t have the chance to put up eye-popping numbers this season. Although he didn’t play until the playoffs, when he helped the Georgia Bulldogs win the National Championship, Pickens enters the draft as one of the top wideout prospects. After a very promising start to his college career, don’t let the majority of a year missed to injury distract you from his potential to be a top Dawg in the NFL.

College Production:

As a 5-star recruit, Pickens came into the Georgia program with a ton of natural talent. He fought for a spot in the lineup, and as a true freshman compiled 49 receptions for 727 yards and 8 touchdowns. He continued this success in the following year as his target share went up and he posted 36 receptions, 513 yards, and 6 touchdowns in just 8 games. In the off-season, he tore his ACL but still came back in time for the end of the 2021 season. He only caught 5 passes, but he averaged over 20 yards on those receptions. Now, a fully healthy Pickens is boosting his draft stock and trying to find his way into the first round, where he surely would have been if he had never missed games with the knee injury.

Strengths:

  • AcrobaticIf you have watched highlights of some of the best saves in the English Premier League, you’ll understand how Pickens catches the ball outside of his frame. If it’s anywhere near him, he is giving his all and putting his body at risk to make the catch. Whether it’s stretching out horizontally or out-jumping his defender, Pickens is going to win a lot of 50/50 balls at the next level.
  • Physical MatchupOne of the most physical wideouts in college football the past couple of years, Pickens certainly plays with an attitude. While that attitude has gotten the better of him in the past (see below), often times it gives him the edge to beat his man one on one. Pickens wants the ball, and we’ve seen that he is willing to do almost anything to win at the catch point.

Weaknesses:

  • Red Flags?In 2019, Pickens got into a fight with a defender from Georgia Tech and was ejected from the game. He was also then suspended for the first half of the following game. There were some rumors of immaturity his freshman year, but since then he’s been pretty clean, and no issues have arisen. While you’ll see some people point to “character concerns” with Pickens, they may not remember being 18 years old, and certainly don’t understand being that young and a superstar on one of the top teams in college football. Basically, I’m not worried about it at this point.
  • Healthy KneeWhile I don’t believe many teams will be worried about his knee and he’ll have plenty of time to be fully healthy by the start of the 2022 season, it will be a small concern going forward. We have seen some players struggle to come back 100% from knee injuries and while we did see some of Pickens at the end of the season, it was certainly not at full health.
  • Above-Average not Elite Route RunnerNot much to elaborate on here, as the title really is simple. Pickens does well to get in and out of his cuts for his size, but he’s doesn’t consistently create separation out of his breaks. Where he wins on his routes consistently is with leverage against his defender, making him a hard matchup in man-to-man situations.

Things to Watch:

After impressing at the combine with a 4.47 40-yard dash, I don’t expect Pickens to re-run the 40 at his pro day. He will likely retest on his vertical and broad jump as those could certainly be improved upon. Either way the numbers he posted are pretty good for a player his size. He did weigh in right under 200 pounds, and while the physicality is obviously there, teams would likely like to see him gain some more muscle on his frame. Something that he could absolutely do now that he is healthy and moving up to the pro level.

Projected Round/Contract:  

There are plenty of people hoping that George Pickens ends up in the back end of the first round, and I certainly think it’s possible, but I’m a bit more conservative with my projection. A couple years ago we saw both Tee Higgins ($2,171,696) and Michael Pittman Jr ($2,153,213) go at the very beginning of the second round, and I think that is one of the sweet spots for Pickens to be selected. This would obviously give him a similar contract to the two players listed above, meaning he’ll be making just over $2 million a year.

Team Fits:  

If I am going off of my early-second round projection (and it’s a good one as the first five teams could all be realistic landing spots), then one of the top teams ready to draft George Pickens would be the Detroit Lions in my eyes. They are going through quite the rebuild and they have a lot of holes to fill, the wideout position being one of the largest. I’m not the biggest Amon-Ra St. Brown ($1,066,313) fan but he could be a great WR2 across from a big physical X-receiver like Pickens. Pickens would give Jared Goff ($33,500,000) a safety blanket to throw to and a field stretcher to help open up the running game. Pickens would also be a great building block for any young quarterback the Lions may choose whether it’s in this year’s draft or in 2023.

If Pickens goes in the first round, a team that could be willing to make the splash with him would be the Miami Dolphins at pick 29. Mike McDaniel may try to replicate the 49ers offensive scheme and Pickens could do great in the Brandon Aiyuk ($3,132,835) role, with Jaylen Waddle ($6,771,498) playing the Deebo Samuel ($1,811,869) role of course. Yeah just think about that for a couple moments and get excited.

Make sure to follow Nate Christian over on Twitter at @NateNFL and check out all the work he is doing with the Dynasty Rewind (@DynastyRewind).

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