George Pickens (Photo by Mark Alberti/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The NFL is investigating Pittsburgh Steelers star wide receiver George Pickens for a potential uniform violation, stemming from the eye black he wore in Week 5 with a vulgar message.

During the Steelers’ Week 5 home game against the Dallas Cowboys on “Sunday Night Football”, close-up cameras showed George Pickens wearing eye black with a message reading, “Open F**KING Always.”

According to ESPN’s Brooke Pryor, the league is now investigating Pickens “for a potential fine over violation of the league’s uniform policy.” As Pryor noted, the league has a rule that bans players from “wearing, displaying or otherwise conveying personal messages either in writing or illustration, unless such message has been approved in advance by the League office.”

The 23-year-old George Pickens had his quietest outing of the season on Sunday, hauling in only three catches on seven targets. This was a major drop-off from Pickens’ Week 4 outing against the Indianapolis Colts, where he caught seven passes for 113 yards.

Pickens is coming off the best season of his young career, hauling in 63 receptions for 1,140 yards and five touchdowns. Through his first five games of 2024, the 2022 second-round pick has 3 catches for 310 yards and no touchdowns.

The Steelers were a fourth-down stop away from beating Dallas to improve to 4-1, but Dak Prescott found Jalen Tolbert in the end zone for the game-winning TD in the waning seconds. Pittsburgh is now 3-2 heading into their Week 6 road game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Steelers Need More From George Pickens & The Offense

The TJ Watt-led defense will always give the Steelers a chance to win, but Pittsburgh won’t compete for a Super Bowl unless the offense finds its rhythm and consistency.

Pittsburgh opened a void at WR when they traded star Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers. If the offense (especially the passing game) doesn’t get going soon, GM Omar Khan should explore the trade market for a receiver like Amari Cooper (Cleveland Browns) or DeAndre Hopkins (Tennessee Titans) or even Davante Adams (Las Vegas Raiders) if he’s still available.