Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin repeatedly praised Kenny Pickett for his willingness to smile in the face of adversity. Now it seems his unwillingness to do just that played a role in their trading him. According to reports on Friday, Pickett struggled to handle things following his December injury.
He frowned in the face of adversity, and now he’s gone, evidently by mutual agreement.
Mitch Trubisky took over for a couple games after Pickett’s injury until the Steelers pulled him for Mason Rudolph. Once in the lineup, Rudolph’s play in so many words put the lie to Pickett’s. Suspected at the time and now further supported, he evidently refused to dress as the emergency quarterback in Week 17.
When asked if he learned anything after having the opportunity to view the game as a spectator, he said, “No”.
according to Kimberley A. Martin, Pickett openly expressed to teammates his frustration over Rudolph starting over him. He believed that he was the better quarterback and should be starting, rather than backing up his third-string quarterback.
According to Albert Breer and others, Tomlin promised Pickett the opportunity to compete for the starting job. This summer. After the Steelers signed Russell Wilson, however, Tomlin changed his tune and essentially let him know Wilson is the starter. Then Pickett requested the trade.
But while that sequence of events is plausible, you’re entering the story midway. All of this ties back to how he’s handled everything that’s happened since his injury. And all of that ties into his play through 25 games as a Steeler.
Put simply, he didn’t do enough to not face a challenge. And when confronted with that challenge, he didn’t handle it well enough to justify turning down a stronger offer. Wilson likely doesn’t come here if he doesn’t expect to start. If you believe Wilson gives you a better chance to win, you don’t refuse to sign him to protect Pickett.
Pickett seemed like a good teammate while he had the spotlight. He entered his second season as the clear starter, a team captain, with the world at his feet. He ended it on the bench in frustration with no guarantee to start another game.
I do understand his frustration to some degree, even if you can question the manner in which he handled it. He had the Steelers at 7-4 and competing for the AFC North title at the time of his injury. By the time he heals, he loses his starting job with no promise of getting it back. Nobody wants to lose their job during an injury, and the fact is he managed to produce wins.
He was entirely within his rights to request a trade, one that certainly seems mutually beneficial at this point. It doesn’t sound like the Steelers expected Pickett to be a great sport as the number two quarterback, does it?
