It’s already well-known that veteran quarterback Baker Mayfield will be the starting quarterback Friday night at Raymond James Stadium as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers host the Pittsburgh Steelers.
What isn’t known is what the position looks like for the Steelers from a playing time perspective Friday night.
Tomlin answered that Wednesday during a press conference ahead of the preseason opener. According to the longtime head coach, second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett will start the game, which is unsurprising. As far as playing time goes though, that remains to be seen leading up to the matchup.
“We’ll play it by ear. We’ll give him what he needs,” Tomlin said to reporters, according to video via the Steelers YouTube page. “That’s always my mentality. I’m open to all that are healthy playing. How much they play will be determined by what it is they need for it to be a productive step in the process for them in the week.”
That largely tracks with what Pickett said Tuesday after practice, stating to reporters that he’s “on go” for the preseason opener and will play as long as the Steelers keep him out there.
Entering his first full season as the starting quarterback, Pickett needs all the reps in the preseason that he can get without jeopardizing the regular season overall. If that’s one series, multiple series, or even a half Friday night, he needs to play, feel the live bullets in the pocket and continue to develop with the rest of the young offense.
What Pickett “needs” are far as reps and production on Friday night is something that the longtime head coach said he hasn’t pondered.
“Really hadn’t thought that much about it,” Tomlin said when asked what he needed to see from Pickett. “When you’re in an environment like this, man, it’s probably prudent for us to be small picture. We got a good padded practice today; it’s Steelers versus Steelers and tomorrow’s practice is geared towards Tampa, so tonight we’ll turn our attention to some of those detailed things.”
That’s quite the change from this time last season for the Steelers as veterans Mitch Trubisky, Mason Rudolph and Pickett as a rookie were all battling for reps and the starting job. There was a clear pecking order entering the first preseason game and there was a set number of snaps and series that the quarterbacks were going to see.
That’s not the case this season. Tomlin will play it by ear and by feel Friday night. After Pickett, presumably the Trubisky and Rudolph will see snaps while undrafted rookie free agent Tanner Morgan might not see a single snap all preseason, if we’re being honest. The top three is set at the position, especially in the order.
The Steelers are comfortable there on paper. Now, it’s about getting them game reps and gearing them up for the season. We’ll see how Tomlin handles it Friday night but expect Pickett and the starters on offense to be out there for a few series.
