After initially being expected to return, Pittsburgh Steelers QB Kenny Pickett has been ruled out for the rest of the team’s Week Eight matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars, per Steelers spokesman Burt Lauten.
Pickett was hit late in the first half by Jaguars DE Adam Gotsis, who drove Pickett into the turf after deflecting his pass. Pickett seemed to be favoring his midsection/rib area while walking to the locker room, and despite coming out of the locker room and warming up on the sideline ahead of the second half, Pickett will not return.
In his place, QB Mitch Trubisky will lead the Steelers offense. Pittsburgh has a short week with the Tennessee Titans on deck for Thursday Night Football, so it’ll be something to monitor if Pickett will be able to get back healthy in time for that game.
The Steelers currently trail the Jaguars 9-3, and the loss of Pickett is not good news for the Steelers’ offense. We’ll see if Trubisky can lead them to a come-from-behind victory in the second half. At this point in the season, with the Steelers at 4-2, the timing of Pickett’s injury is pretty brutal. Hopefully, it won’t cause him to miss more time beyond this week.
We’ll likely learn more about Pickett’s status in the next day or two. If he can’t return against the Titans, it will be the first start that he’s missed this season.
