As Kenny Pickett heads into Year Two, there’s no question that this is his team. There’s no more quarterback controversy, no more question marks around whether he is the Steelers’ guy. He’s learned the playbook inside and out at this point. For OC Matt Canada, that means refining the offense and building upon the scheme built up a year ago. Not starting all over.
Before today’s practice, Canada spoke with reporters about Pickett and the Steelers’ offense.
“He’s the leader.” Canada said via The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly. “We’re doing the things we’ve done in our offense. Obviously, we have wrinkles and differences, but there have not been dramatic changes. Kenny understands it and knows where to go. He has the answers. If they do this, I do this. If they do this and this, then we do this, the ball can go here. I think there’s the feeling with the guys of ownership as far as he’s the leader.”
Pickett has certainly been up to the task in the preseason. While it’s tough to be confident in someone based on their performance against second-team defenses, it’s also hard not to be impressed with what Pickett has done recently. He played five preseason drives, going 13 for 15 with 199 yards and two touchdowns. All five drives resulted in Pittsburgh Steelers’ touchdowns.
Schematically, the Steelers’ offense may have a few new wrinkles added to it. They appear to be utilizing RB screens more than seasons past and perhaps they’ve mixed in more tosses and outside zone playcalls in the run game. But the core structure of the team is the same. Marry the run game with playaction to make both elements look the same to the defense with plenty of pre-snap motion to add another layer of window dressing.
This preseason, it’s worked and Pickett has impressively commanded the offense. He doesn’t have a cannon of an arm or elite rushing ability, so he is going to have to rely on his ability to make the right decision under pressure if he wants to be successful in the NFL. So far, he’s shown quite the ability to do just that, and it seems like he’s poised to take a leap.
With the defense looking as formidable as it has, it gives Pickett the ability to just be good instead of great and lead the Steelers to a lot of wins. But one of the more surprising elements of the offseason is how explosive the offense looks. Pickett has found both Diontae Johnson and George Pickens for big plays down the field and even Jaylen Warren and Calvin Austin have had huge plays of their own.
Obviously, all of this will be a distant memory if the Steelers and Pickett come out of the gate struggling. And they will get a real test with the San Francisco 49ers in Week One. Watching Pickett against that defense should answer a lot of questions about what this year for him and the team. There may not be “dramatic” changes to the playcalls of the Steelers’ offense but there’s one big change compared to a year ago. This is now Kenny Pickett’s offense.
