The Steelers are now in their offseason after failing to reach the playoffs in 2022, coming up just a game short of sneaking in as the seventh seed. They needed help in week 18 and only got some of it, so instead they sat home and watched the playoffs with the rest of us.
On tap is figuring out how to be on the field in January and February instead of being a spectator. They started out 2-6, digging a hole that proved too deep to dig out of even if they managed to go 7-2 in the second half of the year.
Starting from the end of the regular season and leading all the way up to the beginning of the 2023 season, there are plenty of questions that need answered, starting with who will be the offensive coordinator. Which free agents will be kept? Who might be let go due to their salary? How might they tackle free agency with this new front office? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout this offseason, as we have for many years.
Question: How often will Kenny Pickett run in 2023?
One of the interesting facets of the offense in 2023, I believe, will focus on second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett and not just his mobility, but more specific his running ability. Really, how often is he going to take off, whether that is on designed runs or scrambles?
It’s become a sort of a debate in light of the concussions that he suffered last year, his adoption of a new, more protective helmet, and some talk of wanting to keep him in the pocket more. But how much of the latter is actually coming from Pickett? Wasn’t his ability to use his legs, not just in the pocket, one of his selling points as a more modern quarterback?
The subject came up a bit yesterday in the discussion over the Steelers’ rushing yardage total for the 2023 season and where that might wind up. Obviously how much Pickett runs is going to help determine that—after all, scrambles turn potential passing yardage into rushing yardage.
There isn’t, I believe, a truly discernable pattern or trajectory to glean from his rushing numbers last year. There are a couple of peaks and valleys, but nothing clearly says he ran more early or later. A good chunk of his runs—maybe about 20 percent or so—were quarterback sneaks. And the thing about that is, if the sneaks are going to remain a staple, then why should we be hesitant about the notion of him scrambling? Sneaks may be the most dangerous quarterback runs in terms of the potential for head injury.
Pickett averaged 18.2 rushing yards per game. But he did scramble less often after his second concussion, even if he had three to five rushing attempts in the three games after. That included six sneak attempts and two scrambles, as well as some kneeldowns and an aborted play. But, again, how much about the end of the season can we use to determine what the 2023 season will look like in terms of his usage of his legs as a runner?
