Kenny

Pickett

The Eagles sent the No. 98 pick in this year’s draft and a 2025 seventh-round pick to the Steelers in exchange for Pickett and the 120th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Pickett reportedly wanted to move on from the Steelers after the team announced the signing of Russell Wilson and now gets a chance for a fresh start with the Eagles. Pickett has thrown for 4474-13-13 in 25 career games with the Steelers and went 14-10 as a starter. Playing in an offense led by former offensive coordinator Matt Canada didn’t do Pickett any favors over the last two years, but it became apparent toward the end of last season that the team felt more comfortable with Mason Rudolph at the helm after they opted to play Rudolph over Pickett in the team’s Wild Card loss to the Bills. We’ve seen enough from Pickett to know he’s likely best served as a career backup, but a solid year or two in Philadelphia could reignite interest in him as a starter once his rookie contract expires.

The Steelers, apparently, are not going to pursue big-name quarterback options this spring, and instead give Kenny Pickett — he of 13 touchdown passes in 25 NFL games — yet another chance as starter. Pittsburgh general manager Omar Khan said at the NFL Combine that the team has “full faith” in Pickett, who was injured in 2023 and subsequently benched for Mason Rudolph over the season’s final few weeks. “It appears the Steelers are hopeful that first-year offensive coordinator Arthur Smith can unlock something in the third-year QB that the NFL has not yet seen,” DeFabo said. If Rudolph re-signs with the Steelers, he could very well supplant Pickett in what is bound to be one of the NFL’s run heaviest offenses.

According to Fowler, the Steelers “have started the process of rebuilding Pickett, as the third-year quarterback reportedly met with new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith to begin going over things. Fowlers notes that the Steelers’ overall offensive woes under former offensive coordinator Matt Canada may have been enough to buy Pickett one more season, with the hopes that Smith can get more out of him. Pickett has thrown for 4,474 yards, 13 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions in 25 career games. The former No. 20 overall pick has looked like anything but a first-round talent through two years in the league, but he has at least two more years left on his rookie deal, and the team can exercise his fifth-year option for the 2026 season should they be interested in doing so. While rolling with Pickett seems to go against conventional wisdom, the Steelers may feel incentivized to give him one more opportunity, given the contractual benefits.

The more the Steelers reiterate their faith in a third-year quarterback who has thrown for 4,474-13-13 in 25 career games, the funnier it gets. As if that’s not enough, this is the same Kenny Pickett who was sidelined for the final month of the season, and ultimately benched in favor of Mason Rudolph for the Steelers Wild Card playoff game against the Bills. It’s been reported that there may be some “internal division” amongst the Steelers over Pickett and Rudolph. Rudolph is set to hit free agency, but the team has already been vocal on their desire to bring him back. Whether or not the Steelers are aware of their sad quarterback situation is anyone’s guess, but for now, they’re putting on a brave face ahead of free agency and the draft.

This was somewhat expected. Wide receiver Diontae Johnson gave his full endorsement of Mason Rudolph at the end of the season, saying, “I hope he gets the [starting] job next year,” after the season had concluded. Owner Art Rooney is also on record saying he hopes the team can re-sign Rudolph, who is set to be an unrestricted free agent. How deeply any “division” over the Steelers’ quarterback situation may run is anybody’s guess, but presumed starter and former first round pick Kenny Pickett is anything but a lock to lead the team for a full 17 games next season. Rudolph threw for 719-3-0 in three regular season starts, going 3-0 while inching them into the postseason. While it wasn’t an impressive line, Rudolph has clearly curried favor with some in the building. The Steelers would be wise to look for a complete upgrade at the position, but could have challenging days ahead if Pickett and Rudolph are the top two quarterbacks on the roster heading into training camp.

The Steelers appear set to (finally) upgrade their quarterback room under new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, and the Bears seem ready to move on from Fields and take a quarterback with the first pick in the NFL Draft. Fields could be a good fit for Smith’s ultra-run heavy offensive system. For fantasy purposes, the hope would be that the Steelers more consistently use Fields as a rusher after the Bears vacillated between treating Fields as a mobile QB and a pocket passer over three uneven seasons.

Just when fantasy managers thought they were done with the maddening Smith, he returns as Pittsburgh’s OC. He’ll surely bring his massively run-heavy ways to the Steelers, with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren likely seeing significant rush volume in Smith’s run-first, antiquated offense. Kenny Pickett, meanwhile, will have vanishingly little chance of developing in Smith’s offense. Look for receivers from George Pickens to Diontae Johnson to be frustrating fantasy options as Smith establishes the run in any and every game script.

Johnson, 35, has already interviewed for offensive coordinator jobs with the Browns, Saints, Patriots, and Eagles. The Steelers are looking to revamp an offense that has been among the league’s least productive and most predictable over the past couple seasons. Johnson’s work with C.J. Stroud in Houston is surely appealing to a Steelers organization desperate to salvage Kenny Pickett as a viable starting NFL quarterback.

Tomlin noted in his interview that he would like Mason Rudolph to compete with Pickett for the Steelers’ QB1 job, but also pointed out that Rudolph is a free agent this offseason. The Steelers will likely make a push to re-sign Rudolph, but there’s no guarantee he will return to the team. With that said, a return to the Steelers in 2024 would be wise, as Rudolph played over a healthy Pickett in the AFC Wild Card loss to the Bills and has already received endorsements from several Steelers players, including wide receiver Diontae Johnson. Pickett has struggled in his first two seasons as a starter, throwing for 4,74-13-13 in 25 career games. Any legitimate competition between Pickett and another vet would likely result in Pickett opening Week 1 as the QB2 on the depth chart, but we are a long way from seeing how everything plays out. Whether Tomlin admits it or not, the Steelers are in quarterback purgatory until they find a way out of it.

“A bit unusual for a captain not to speak with reporters on locker clean,” was beat writer Ray Fittipaldo’s Tuesday observation. Fittipaldo was not trying to stir up trouble, but it is indeed unusual, and confirms the obvious that Pickett and the team are at an uneasy standstill heading into the offseason. The Steelers at first tried to get around the fact that Pickett had been benched for Mason Rudolph, but it was no longer deniable when he was removed from the injury report and Rudolph kept starting, including for the Steelers’ Wild Card Round loss. It’s also undeniable that the Steelers’ offense was flat better under career backup Rudolph than Pickett. The owner of a career 78.8 quarterback rating and an abysmal 13 passing scores across 25 appearances, Pickett turns 26 in June. That means there is very little projection left in his future. If Pickett enters Week 1 as the starter, it will be with the shortest of leashes.