The Pittsburgh Steelers lost Sunday’s game to the Arizona Cardinals. And they might’ve lost their quarterback for quite some time. In an update to an earlier report, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac says QB Kenny Pickett will have surgery Monday and miss two to four weeks.
Dulac initially tweeted that Pickett’s surgery could be season-ending before backing off that report and indicating he would miss up to a month of action.
Earlier today, Dulac tweeted the prognosis on Pickett’s injury was “not good” and that he was expected to be sidelined an “extended” period of time. ESPN’s Adam Schefter followed that up by saying Pickett was expected to miss a “couple weeks” and that Mitch Trubisky is set to start Thursday against the New England Patriots.
Now, it’s possible Trubisky not only starts Week 14 but a lot longer than that.
Pickett was injured while attempting to scramble up the middle for a touchdown. He came into the game with an ankle injury and sported a brace in warmups and during the game. It’s unclear if the two injuries are related. He practiced full all week and did not have a game status on the team’s Friday injury report, telling the media earlier in the week that his injury was minor.
As confirmed by Mike Tomlin, Trubisky is next in line to start. He’s made five career starts in his Steelers career though they all came last year. Four were when he was atop the depth chart before being replaced by Pickett at halftime during the team’s Week Four loss to the New York Jets. The fifth came when Pickett was injured for the team’s Week 15 game against the Carolina Panthers, a 24-16 Steelers win.
Given the timetable, it’s not clear if Pickett would be placed on IR. The two-to-four weeks range suggests he will not but obviously, he’s not expected back for at least a little while. In his absence, Trubisky will start with Mason Rudolph serving as the No. 2 quarterback. The Steelers are also likely to add a third-string quarterback to the team’s practice squad.
The Steelers take on the New England Patriots Sunday before a mini-bye week, though they will lose a day when they take on the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday Dec. 16. One week later, the team will play the Cincinnati Bengals before finishing out the season on the road at Seattle and at Baltimore, which may have the AFC North locked up by that point.
