GeorgePickens

News: 1 day agoPickens (hamstring) was a full participant in practice Tuesday and does not have an injury designation for Wednesday's matchup against Kansas City, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.

Spin: Pickens sat out each of Pittsburgh's past three games due to a hamstring injury, but he showed significant improvement in practice this week, as he was deemed a full participant in Monday's walkthrough before participating in full in Tuesday's standard practice session. As such, the star wideout is set to return for the Christmas Day home matchup against the Chiefs. Pickens is 150 yards away from reaching the 1,000-yard mark on the campaign and should immediately resume his role as Pittsburgh's biggest offensive weapon in the passing game, while Calvin Austin will return to working as the team's No. 2 wideout after tallying 65 receiving yards both of the past two games in Pickens' absence.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Heading into his third pro season, Pickens is the unquestioned top target in Pittsburgh after the club traded Diontae Johnson to Carolina. Last season, Pickens averaged 13.2 PPG, despite having inconsistent quarterback play. He flashed his big-play ability, as he logged four games of 20 or more points, including a season-high 35.5 against the Bengals in Week 16. Given his vertical ability (14 receptions on throws of 20 or more air yards), Pickens has real fantasy potential if the Steelers can get a higher level of play at quarterback from either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields. You can draft Pickens as a flex, but he certainly has the ability to produce breakout games that can win you a week.