The Steelers’ 2023 season has been put out of its misery, ending as so many have before in recent years: a disappointing, blowout playoff loss. The only change-up lately is when they miss the playoffs altogether. But with the Buffalo Bills stamping them out in the Wildcard Round, they have another long offseason to look forward to.
The biggest question hanging over the team as we speak is the future of head coach Mike Tomlin. While a firing seems unlikely, speculation has been rampant about his continuing. When asked about his contract status after the loss to the Bills, he walked away mid-question.
Beyond that, there is…the quarterback question. Is Kenny Pickett the guy? Will he get another season’s reprieve without a challenge? How will the team address the depth chart? Do they re-sign Mason Rudolph, one of few significant unrestricted free agents?
The Steelers are swirling with more questions this offseason than usual, frankly, though the major free agent list is less substantial than usual. It’s just a matter of…what happens next? Where do they go from here? How do they find the way forward?
Question: Will Mike Tomlin endorse Kenny Pickett as his 2024 starter?
The Steelers announced that head coach Mike Tomlin will be holding his season-ending press conference today, which quite frankly should be interesting. The last time he was in front of the media, he walked away from the podium in the middle of a question. Granted, it was at the clear end of his post-game press conference and it was a question the reporter knew damn well he didn’t want to and wouldn’t answer, but it’s still a significant note to leave off.
There are some major topics to discuss, as one would imagine. I’m sure he will confirm to the media today about his intentions to return in 2024, but probably won’t say much about his contract, which runs through 2024 only. He’ll be asked about the vacancy at offensive coordinator, inevitably.
But the real question, and Alex Kozora the only question that matters, is what he says about Kenny Pickett. After all, he was supposed to be the franchise quarterback, yet for at least the last two games, he dressed as the backup while healthy.
Tomlin left him on the top of the depth chart and used language like “staying with the hot hand” to talk about his decision to start Mason Rudolph in the season finale and then in the Wild Card game. After all, don’t fix what ain’t broke, as they say, and the Steelers were winning the games Rudolph was starting.
But Rudolph is a free agent. Mitch Trubisky is likely to be released. Pickett could be the only quarterback on the roster come March. What will Tomlin have to say about him? Will he endorse him as his quarterback in 2024? Will he speak of him as the team did of Rudolph going into 2022—a player they feel “comfortable” starting if they needed to?
