Last offseason, Kenny Pickett was seen as the clear-cut starting quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers after he performed well during his rookie season with the team in 2021. But with the Steelers now bringing in Russell Wilson, they’re forcing him to compete and prove himself.
As Albert Breer of SI points out, “the kid gloves are off” as the Steelers figure out the future of Kenny Pickett with the team.
“Kenny Pickett’s not a rookie anymore. He played well enough when he was one, then had an uneven second year—to the point where Mason Rudolph (you may have needed a reminder he was still on the team) outplayed him and gave Pittsburgh a spark down the stretch. As a result, the kid gloves are off with Pickett now, and for good,” Breer wrote.
“As such, the time is right to put competition, not a nurturing environment, in that room. And bringing Wilson in means adding a player with Super Bowl bona fides to the group. He won’t be arriving to mentor Pickett. He’s going there to try and win the job, and that should help the Steelers get their answer on their 2022 first-round pick faster.”
It’s a pretty brutal situation for Pickett to go from a clear-cut starter to having to compete for his job again. But if he’s going to make it in the NFL, this is a situation he’s going to have to learn to thrive in.
We’ll have to see what happens.
[SI.com]
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