PITTSBURGH — As it always seems to do since he entered the league, the behavior of wide receiver George Pickens has become a hot-topic of conversation again after his playing time was reduced — and his tasteless use of eye black was displayed — in Sunday night's loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

However, coach Mike Tomlin did little to provide further clarity at his weekly Tuesday news conference about why his No. 1 receiver played the fewest amount of snaps ---34, or 58.6% of the plays against the Cowboys — of his three-year career.

What's more, Tomlin said he was unaware Pickens was wearing eye-black tape that said "Always (expletive) Open," even though it has been prominently posted on social media.

Tomlin did say he was aware of the unnecessary penalty at the end of the game when he grabbed Cowboys cornerback Jourdan Lewis by the facemask and yanked him to the ground. It was just the latest in what has been a growing list of petulant and frustrated acts of behavior by Pickens, which included slamming his helmet to the ground on the bench after a failed series.

"Certainly there are things I'm open to addressing and will do," Tomlin said. "I just don't detail it in settings like this because it's business between he and I in terms of his growth and development as a player and as a man. I am aware of that, and that has been and will continue to be addressed. I wasn't aware of the messaging."

Pickens' eye-tape message seemed inappropriate, also, because he was coming off a game in Indianapolis in which he was targeted 11 times and caught seven passes for 113.

Nonetheless, after he played only 34 snaps against the Cowboys — fewer than Van Jefferson and Calvin Austin — Tomlin said Pickens' reduced role was for "snap management," comparing it to the way the Steelers monitor how much they use 14-year veteran Cam Heyward.

He reiterated the same on Tuesday.

"I didn't have any outline issue with his effort," Tomlin said. "It's just a snap management thing in an effort to be more productive in today's game."

That explanation is puzzling enough.

Pickens has been targeted a team-high 36 times in five games — or 26.5% of Justin Fields' 136 attempts — and his team-high 23 receptions are 15 more than any other wide receiver. What's more, he has seven of the Steelers' 15 pass plays of at least 20 yards.

Ironically, Pickens was used less against the Cowboys in a game in which Tomlin cited explosive plays by the Cowboys — and not enough by the Steelers — as a reason for the outcome.

"Often times, those chunk plays really affect how games unfold," Tomlin said. "You could put together drives with less execution when you have big plays. You can also change the field positioning component when you have big plays. We realize explosion plays don't often define games, but they do kind of shape perspective within games."

So why the eye black with the expletive?

Maybe Pickens thinks he is not used enough. After five games last season, he already had 40 catches, 429 yards (119 more than this year) and two touchdowns. Right now, he is the only wide receiver in the league with at least 23 receptions who doesn't have a touchdown.

It is possible Tomlin could be punishing Pickens for something he is not doing on the football field, though that is unlikely. Last year, when Pickens refused to block on a run play by Jaylen Warren in Indianapolis, he wasn't disciplined at all — at least, not in terms of reduced playing time.

So here it is again, Tomlin having to explain the behavior of his top receiver.

"Largely, he's been an improvement in those areas, certainly," Tomlin said.

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