Pittsburgh Steelers rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett has faced some criticism on his play so far this season. On the season he has thrown eight interceptions and only two touchdowns, and his performance last Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles was far from great.
CBS Sports analyst Chris Trapasso graded Pickett’s performance and gave him a grade of “C-.” Pickett supporters may say that grade is a bit harsh considering the play of the offensive line in the game, while some of Pickett’s critics may say it is about right or a bit too nice considering he didn’t throw for a touchdown and missed some open receivers.
Trapasso, though, gave a pretty fair explanation of why Pickett earned a C-.
“Pickett didn’t have much of a chance in this one against the Eagles, as the Steelers offensive line was drastically overwhelmed throughout. Then a lot of what the rookie did was check it down as the Philadelphia lead increased. Not much to take from this outing from Pickett from an individual perspective. “
I think what Trapasso said was pretty accurate. The Steelers young offensive line did not do Pickett any favors, but at the same time, Pickett has been very quick to hit his check down target and not push it down the field. Maybe Pickett does not fully trust what he is seeing yet due to the many disguises NFL defenses employ, or maybe he just does not trust his arm to make those throws. Either way, at some point Pickett is going to have to take more chances down the field if he is going to be a successful NFL quarterback.
Trapasso did credit Pickett with a “high caliber throw” on one play in particular though, a back shoulder pass to George Pickens that was a couple of inches away from being a big completion. That connection is one thing Steelers fans are very hopeful for for the future. The two already have a good connection, and have the potential to be one of the best QB-WR duos in the NFL if both continue to improve.
