It has been a rollercoaster few years for Kenny Pickett. After being the first quarterback selected in the 2022 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, he showed enough promise in his rookie season to give many hope that he could be the team’s franchise quarterback of the future. Those hopes were elevated after his second preseason in which he lit up the scoreboard. But then he fell flat during the regular season, got benched after an ankle injury in favor of Mason Rudolph, and then got traded to the Philadelphia Eagles after Russell Wilson signed with the Steelers.
Now, there are questions over whether he’ll even be able to win the top backup job behind starting QB Jalen Hurts, per 94WIP’s Eagles beat reporter Eliot Shorr-Parks on X.
“Might be time to have the Tanner McKee over Kenny Pickett discussion,” Shorr-Parks wrote. “Would be very curious to see them both get reps with the 1st team offense just to see who does better. It might be McKee.”
McKee was taken in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft and is entering his second season with the Eagles. He has never suited up for a game let alone played a single snap in the NFL, but he is giving Pickett a run for his money for the top backup job.
At the beginning of training camp, some reports out of Eagles training camp indicated that Pickett’s arm talent was better than expected.
Just a week later, McKee is getting some QB2 reps over Pickett, per Philly Inquirer’s EJ Smith on X.
I am sure this news won’t surprise some Steelers fans. In 24 starts, Pickett managed just 4,474 total passing yards and 13 touchdowns. That is a stat line that would be mildly impressive for a single season – not great for two.
The irony is, Pickett would have likely been the undisputed No. 2 QB in Pittsburgh behind Russell Wilson this season. Reports indicated that he requested his way out of town after feeling misled about the nature of the competition with Wilson. The Steelers traded him and then acquired Justin Fields in a trade with the Chicago Bears.
Look how that has worked out for Fields. Wilson opened training camp injured, and Fields has made the most of the extra opportunities. That could have been Pickett, but instead he is at risk for being buried on the depth chart as the Eagles’ QB3.
