3 reasons Steelers fans should not want Kenny Pickett in NFL Draft
By Tommy Jaggi
Many Steelers fans think drafting Kenny Pickett is a dream scenario, but here’s why we shouldn’t want Pittsburgh to take him in the 2022 NFL Draft.
It’s not hard to see why many Pittsburgh Steelers fans are infatuated with the idea of drafting QB Kenny Pickett. Like something out of storybook, Pitt fans could watch their quarterback play on the same field for the same city that he has spent the past five years performing in front of.
However, I really believe that much of this is nostalgia, and fans need to sit back and think about what decision would be best for the organization; not just what they would like to see happen.
Pickett is easy to like, and on the right team, I think he could be a very solid player in the NFL. However, the more I consider all of the variables, the more I start to think the Steelers should steer clear of him in the 2022 NFL Draft. Here are three reasons why:
Pickett is a one-year-wonder
Being a one-year-wonder wonder isn’t always a bad thing. That’s exactly what Joe Burrow was at LSU, yet he was just minutes away from winning the Super Bowl in his second NFL season. Unfortunately, players like Burrow only come around once in a blue moon, and Pickett isn’t nearly on the same level as a prospect.
The production for Pickett was incredible this year — nobody is going to deny that. The fifth-year senior put up 4,319 yards to go with 42 touchdowns and 7 interceptions in 13 games, according to Sports Reference. What’s concerning is that he could revert back to the QB we saw from 2017 to 2020.
In those years, Pickett was hardly a draftable football player with his pedestrian yards per attempt and overall underwhelming play. I don’t see Pickett making a big regression, but with as big of a sample as he had in college, you would like to see him string together more than one good sample of play.