At this point in his career, with 13 games under his belt, the comfort level and grasp of the offense under third-year offensive coordinator Matt Canada is there for second-year quarterback. Quite honestly, it’s expected.
But that hasn’t taken away from that grasp of the offense and overall comfort impressing veteran backup quarterback Mitch Trubisky early in training camp.
Speaking with reporters Thursday following practice at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Trubisky praised Pickett, for taking great ownership of the offense and getting better each day while settling nicely into his leadership role with the Black and Gold.
“Keeps getting better each day. He’s got a very good grasp of the offense, he’s got very great ownership,” Trubisky said regarding Pickett, according to video via Steelers.com. “He’s leading the guys in a very great way and we keep getting better each day. We’re putting a lot of stuff in. We got a lot of the offense in now for this time of year, which is impressive. He’s got it down, he’s making great decisions going and he’s throwing the ball really well.
“So we just gotta keep stacking days, keep stacking days, and I think he’s doing a great job.”
Trubisky speaking highly of Pickett comes as no surprise. While the two battled for the starting job last season and Trubisky ultimately lost the job to Pickett during the season, the two quarterbacks are very close and have a great young pup/veteran relationship going on.
Hearing that the Steelers have a lot of the offense implemented this early in camp with so many new faces is certainly great news. But it can’t be all that surprising considering Pickett has the experience in games under his belt and has been the guy under center all offseason, which wasn’t the case last offseason.
Along with having a good grasp offensively and truly understanding the scheme, where and when to attack and how to work through progressions, Pickett is taking on a leadership role, too, something he says he doesn’t take lightly this offseason. He’s a natural leader, one whom guys gravitate towards.
It helps that he’s the starting quarterback, but when a player puts in the work off the field the way Pickett does, that matters to teammates.
Though he’s had some ups and downs in training camp early on, including a sloppy day Thursday in Latrobe, Pickett’s arrow is very clearly pointing up, to steal a Mike Tomlin phrase. He’s the unquestioned starting quarterback, and will likely be voted a team captain. Taking that ownership of the offense is a huge development for him.
He’s comfortable in it, believes in it, and others are starting to believe in it, too. That might be the biggest overall development for the Steelers of the offseason.
