For QB Kenny Pickett, the 2023 season was not what anybody had hoped it would be. The arrow was firmly pointing upward toward the end of his rookie season, and he rode that wave into a sterling 2023 preseason in which the offense scored five touchdowns on the five drives he played. Hopes were sky-high, but the narratives quickly turned around on him after an uninspiring 2023 season. Former Steelers RB Merril Hoge joined 93.7 The Fan’s The PM Team on Thursday and was asked about the quarterback situation in Pittsburgh. He had some interesting things to say about Pickett and why getting benched may be a positive.
“I think that was the best thing for him ’cause he was playing way too fast,” Hoge said. “He wasn’t even letting things develop. He was way outside his rhythm and characteristics and skill set that he had coming out of college, so that was eroding. And as I’ve always said, you can ruin players mentally way before you ruin ’em physically in our league.”
Pickett was widely viewed as the most pro-ready quarterback in his draft class when the Steelers used the 20th overall pick in hopes of making him their next franchise QB. He has displayed some positive traits — leading six fourth-quarter comebacks, throwing just four interceptions in 12 starts this year, and holding a 14-10 overall win-loss record as a starter — but he has been unable to consistently generate points. In 24 career starts, he has just 13 touchdown passes. For a deep dive into Pickett’s first two seasons, check out our Jeremy Pike’s comprehensive analysis here.
He bails out clean pockets and drifts into sacks too often and has had inconsistent accuracy on relatively easy route concepts. The Steelers barely utilized the middle of the field with him as their starter over two seasons. Some of that has to do with former offensive coordinator Matt Canada, but some of the blame falls on Pickett himself.
QB Mason Rudolph stepped in late last season and played well with back-to-back games of the Steelers scoring 30 points or more and winning three straight games to earn the Steelers a place in the playoffs. He also had a multi-touchdown game in his first start of the season, something Pickett has only been able to do once in his 24 starts.
“So his removal I think was a plus for him,” Hoge said. “To see how Mason actually played. What was impressive is how he played from the pocket and his pocket presence…How he threw from the pocket, how he processed things, his accuracy.”
While it is a nice thought to have, Pickett was actually asked during the season about learning from the sidelines while he was out. He dismissed that thought with a simple “no.”
All signs point to Pickett being given the opportunity to start again at the beginning of the 2024 season, but with a new offensive coordinator and multiple new assistant coaches on offense as well, the leash may be a little shorter as pressure continues to mount.
