Kenny Pickett Continues To Catch Strays As Steelers Quarterback Situation Drags On

Andrew Mies·
CULTURESPORTS
·
Kenny P
Steelers

Will it be Russell Wilson? Will it be Justin Fields? Who is going to lead my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers to the promised land this year? The question of who will be the Steelers starting quarterback this week continues to go unanswered by Mike Tomlin, and while fans are quick to fire off their opinion one way or the other, there’s one player who continues to take a heck of an online beating.

No, it’s not one of the quarterbacks involved. It’s not a quarterback who was rumored to sign with the team this offseason but didn’t. Mike Tomlin is taking some licks for taking his time (let the man cook, he knows what he’s doing) but it’s not him either.

Nope, the person who continues to take the most flack from this situation is Kenny Pickett, former first round pick and hopeful franchise quarterback who currently sits behind Jalen Hurts on the Eagles depth chart.

Admittedly, a lot of this abuse is unfair. The guy obviously tried to win and there’s an easy argument that he never got a chance to shine in a non-Matt Canada designed offense, so we can’t fully judge his capacity to lead a team. But after watching Mason Rudolph fill in at the end of the season and rip off 3 straight wins against the Bengals, Seahawks, and arch-rival Ravens to make the playoffs, a lot of people began to think it wasn’t the offensive system, but Pickett himself that was the problem.

Rumors of pouting and some lackluster media appearances added fuel to the fire and soon seemingly the entire Steelers fanbase, many of whom had not long ago appointed him savior of the franchise, was rallying the troops to force him out and bring in someone new or stick with Mason Rudolph. The organization obliged the first half of that request, which leads us to Week 7, where either former Super Bowl Champion and 8x Pro Bowler Russell Wilson or former 11th overall pick Justin Fields, will head the offense against the Jets on Sunday night.

But back to Kenny Pickett…

It seems like the Pitt star trends on Twitter/X every day and I really can’t figure out why other than he really ticked off a rabidly loyal fanbase that puts a lot of value on a player’s character, something that was called into question many times throughout Pickett’s short tenure in Pittsburgh.

In the midst of Fields vs Wilson arguments, fans just can’t help but toss shots at Kenny Pickett and some are downright brutal…

And there’s plenty more where those came from…

Notice how pretty much all of the complaints about Kenny were from how he acted and handled himself, not about his on-field play. Had he not pouted, requested a trade, or gave a stern “No” when asked if he’s learning anything while watching from the sidelines at the end of last season, more than likely the fans would at least like and root for the guy, similar to how we do for Juju Smith-Schuster, James Connor, and Mike Hilton, though there’s certainly a chance we’d still have traded him.

For me, I like both Wilson and Fields. If I were Tomlin I don’t think I’d make a QB change right now with the team being 4-2 with two losses of just three points apiece, plus Fields being significantly younger with a longer future, but I’m not mad about Russ getting his shot. Talk about being a professional, Russ has done nothing but be a veteran leader since arriving and I can get behind him getting a chance.

As for Kenny Pickett… I’ll just hope for all my intrastate football fans, that Hurts stays healthy, because if Pittsburgh talks this way about Kenny I don’t even want to imagine how Philly would treat him…

A beer bottle on a dock

MORE FROM WHISKEY RIFF

WHISKEY RIFF RAFF PODCAST

WHISKEY RIFF SHOP

NEWSLETTER

ABOUT US

THE TEAM

STAY ENTERTAINED

A RIFF ON WHAT COUNTRY IS REALLY ABOUT

A beer bottle on a dock