The Pittsburgh Steelers racked up another win on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, moving to 6-3 on the season and staying in prime position to get a playoff berth. However, the process of Pittsburgh’s victory came with the running game carrying the offense. The rushing attack put up over 200 yards on the ground while the defense managed to secure a couple of impact turnovers to help seal the deal for Pittsburgh.
The passing game looked stagnant once again this season as QB Kenny Pickett completed 14-of-23 pass attempts for 126 yards, finishing the game with 4.96 adjusted net yards per passing attempt. It marked yet another underwhelming performance by Pickett, and while the offense did just enough to win, the young quarterback still is leaving a lot to be desired as the potential future of this franchise.
Head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about Pickett’s performance during his weekly press conference on Tuesday and specifically if he needs to see more from his quarterback going forward.
“Certainly,” Tomlin responded to the media via video from the Steelers’ YouTube channel. “Man, we’re gonna need more, particularly as this road narrows, but guys like Kenny and myself, man, we’re measured by wins and losses. He and I talk about that often and openly. We know what our jobs are. Our jobs are to win. And so, that’s where we are. That’s where our focus is. I love the fact that he embraces that. Down in and down out, are there some things to work on? Certainly. But it’s not like we’re going to start on Wednesday working on those things. We’ve been working on those things, and we’ll continue to work on those things, and we’ll continue to until we get the desired result.”
Tomlin acknowledged that Pickett must improve on a down-to-down basis as there are moments where he flashes excellent ball placement and playmaking, but there are also moments where he misses open receivers places the ball behind or outside his intended target or runs himself into trouble in the pocket attempting to flee instead of stepping up and stepping into his throw.
Still, Tomlin is right that quarterbacks can post gaudy stats, but if they don’t deliver wins, those stats are all for naught. Pickett has done well in the win category as Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback, boasting a 13-8 record in games that he has started and a 13-5 record since the team’s bye week last season. Pickett is also hard to beat when he doesn’t turn the football over, doing a great job of keeping the offense on schedule and making the necessary plays to close out close games while having a running game and stingy defense supporting him.
Pickett has been more of a game manager than a field general thus far in his NFL career, doing just enough to help Pittsburgh win but not dominating like we see other quarterbacks do in the league. Tomlin wants to see Pickett improve in this area of his game, and frankly he’s expecting it. Still, Tomlin has always lived by the mantra that style points don’t matter as long as you win football games. Pickett has proven to be a winner halfway through his second season, and Tomlin is willing to work with Pickett until the rest of the on-field performances follow suit.
