BALTIMORE — Individually, it had to be one of the most frustrating days of George Pickens’ football career. But it was also one of his most rewarding as a pro.

Pickens’ Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens, 17-10, on Saturday, positioning themselves to earn a playoff spot that became official the next day.

“That’s the only thing that matters,” Pickens said from the postgame locker room in Baltimore. “Getting a victory.”

Note what did not, in that moment, matter to Pickens — that he was not thrown a pass. For the first time in the NFL career of the precocious wide receiver, Pickens was not targeted. It was also just the second time he did not have a catch, among 34 games covering two seasons.

In the past, Pickens has had some high-profile moments — on the sideline during a 2022 game in Atlanta, for example — in which his lack of involvement got to him. His effort has been publicly questioned after he failed to engage in blocking during a game last month in Indianapolis, and sometimes Pickens’ social-media behavior has drawn ire.

But there Pickens was, after a game in which few could have blamed him for frustration in a lack of involvement in the offense — and he had nothing to express but excitement after a big team win.

“He’s not the selfish player that people make him out to be,” running back Jaylen Warren said late last week.

Pickens will play in an NFL postseason game for the first time when the Steelers play at the Buffalo Bills in a wild-card round game Sunday.

After Pickens had exploded the previous two games (11 catches, 326 yards, two touchdowns) coinciding with Mason Rudolph taking over at quarterback, Pickens had the attention of the Ravens defense.

That, combined with a persistent wind and heavy rain, led to zero throws from Rudolph toward Pickens on Saturday.

“They double-covered GP most of the game,” Rudolph said after. “I told him I was very proud of the way he handled it. I thought it was a very mature, team-first attitude. He was not whining or asking for the ball. He knew schematically they were trying to take him away. I think that’s a form of flattery from a defense. They know how explosive he is. He blocked hard all day. He was excited for his teammates, and that was awesome to see.”

After Pickens had three catches of at least 44 yards in two games since Rudolph took over, it was Diontae Johnson who made the big play in Baltimore. Johnson’s 71-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter was the difference in the game.

Whereas in the past during an infamous Johnson touchdown, Pickens was criticized for not looking happy about it, Pickens in the wake of the Ravens game drew rave reviews from teammates.

Pickens, too, said he’s joined teammates in embracing each other after a late-season stretch in which the organization was much-criticized from the outside before finishing on a three-game winning streak.

“On the back half of the season, we the only guys we got,” Pickens said Saturday. “So we just kind of just stick together.”

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