The Pittsburgh Steelers are right where we are: sitting at home being mad. Although they managed to make the playoffs in 2023, they lost in the first round. It has now been seven years without a postseason victory, the longest drought in franchise history. The question is what to do next.
The first step is always taking stock of what happened and what is left. That’s part of the exit meeting process, in which coaches meet with each player. They discuss the season and their expectations moving forward—and potentially their role within it.
While we might not know all the details about what goes on between head coach Mike Tomlin and his players during these exit meetings, we do know how we would conduct those meetings if they were let up to us. So here are the Depot’s exit meetings for the Steelers’ roster following the 2023 season.
Player: Kenny Pickett
Position: QB
Experience: 2 Years
Year Two was not what it was supposed to be for Kenny Pickett, the golden boy of the Steel City. A star quarterback at Pitt, he did not step up to the plate when destiny called in 2023. In fact, he finished his second season on the bench, watching his backup’s backup play in the postseason.
Call me crazy, but I feel like that says a lot. You’re not a franchise quarterback if you’re healthy and you’re watching somebody else do your job. I don’t think that statement really requires very much explanation, certainly not for Steelers fans.
To his credit, the Steelers did win when he was on the field. They were 7-3 when he started and played the majority of the snaps. They lost two games in which he was injured before halftime, with Mitch Trubisky stinking it up in his wake. They may not have scored a lot, but they scored when it mattered: he had three game-winning drives and fourth-quarter comebacks.
How much you think of Pickett may be tied to how much you believe in and value intangibles and the concept of clutch. He is an intangibles guy, and he’s won a bunch of games in the fourth quarter. But he has the worst touchdown percentage in NFL history among quarterbacks with 500 or more pass attempts, which people seem to think is pretty important for the position.
Beyond that, he struggled to survey the entire field, leading to some bad missed reads throughout the season. He still got the jitters in the pocket, his willingness to stand tall and deliver the throw an inconsistent trait at best. He became increasingly conservative, unwilling to put the ball in harm’s way—his lone saving virtue.
It has been a long time since he’s thrown an interception, that’s true. It has been a long time since he’s thrown a touchdown as well. His last one was on Nov. 2. While there were glimmers of hope after the Steelers fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada, his passing chart looking different, the fact is we didn’t get to see enough to judge either way.
The Steelers understandably remain interested in seeing if they can salvage him but are on record in saying that they want to challenge him. The hope is that a new offensive coordinator can get the most out of him. But even if he can, it remains to be seen how much is in there. Steelers fans are not optimistic.
