Pat McAfee Reveals ‘Buy in Culture’ Concerns Behind George Pickens’ Media Narrative

The NFL fans are criticizing the Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens for showing a lack of effort in his previous matchup against the Indianapolis Colts. The NFL is a sensitive sport when it comes to injuries, and to extend their playing career, players sometimes get conscious when it comes to escaping sure-shot injury situations. According to the Steelers wide receiver, this is exactly what he did in a situation during the Colts clash.

During the game, Steelers’ Jaylen Warren was stopped by the Colts’ three defenders, and Pickens lacked the effort to block the opposition for his teammate. Subsequently, the Steelers enthusiasts raged in anger toward the WR for not coming in to support his team member. And in this storm of rage, Pat McAfee is chipping in his opinion.

McAfee shares his thoughts on Pickens’ media narrative

McAfee shared a video on his YouTube channel highlighting his thoughts on the media narrative around Pickens’ lack of effort. After witnessing the situation, McAfee commented how this is a “Buy in Culture” and not just a one-player situation, mentioning the blame to not be on Pickens’ shoulders as much as it is made out to be.

McAfee said, “He(Pickens) said that last year people were telling me how good of a blocker I am. Now the same people telling me, I’m not the same blocker and everything like that. So, George Pickens is certainly a target of conversation in Pittsburgh, around the Pittsburgh sports media.”

Addressing the issue further going on in the NFL, the former punter said, “But whenever you see other teams okay and how their wide receivers operate, yeah it’s hard not to be like oh. This feels like this is a total buyin culture situation as opposed to just a one player situation.”

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However, the Steelers WR just escaped his injury situation, according to him. The Steelers lost against the Colts by 30-13, and that loss is just adding to the criticism surrounding the star and the Pittsburgh team.

The situation that brought criticism upon Pickens

Pickens didn’t put any effort into tackling Julian Blackmon, who intercepted Mitch Trubisky. Moreover, the block that he missed for Jaylen Warren could have resulted in a touchdown in the game. However, this act was highlighted after the game, and the fans just charged the WR for his lack of effort. 

Justifying his lack of effort, Pickens said, “I didn’t want to get injured. When you stay in and block somebody, you can get run on very easily.” Moreover, he emphasized how a defeat is unacceptable for him. “Nobody likes losing, and everybody gets crazy after witnessing a defeat.” Meanwhile, let us know your thoughts on George Pickens’ situation, and what you think about Pickens’ justification.

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