In a somewhat surprising turn of events, the Pittsburgh Steelers may have the chance to play a familiar face twice a year. Former first-round quarterback Kenny Pickett has been traded from the Philadelphia Eagles to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson and a fifth-round pick.
The Steelers traded Pickett away almost a year ago to the eventual Super Bowl champions, where he played sparingly as the primary backup for Jalen Hurts. He played in just five games, including one start, throwing for 291 yards and two touchdowns.
The former Steelers QB will now be on his third NFL team in just four seasons, something no fan wanted to see happen when he was selected 20th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Now that he is back in the AFC North, what does it mean for a Browns team with major questions at QB?
Pittsburgh Steelers should be unbothered by seeing Kenny Pickett join the Cleveland Browns
The Browns are in a bad position when it comes to the QB spot, and that is putting it nicely. Not only is Deshaun Watson's horrendous contract still on the books for two more seasons, but he isn't even expected to be available to play next season, thanks to a setback with his Achilles injury recovery.
With limited cap space and few veteran options to choose from, the draft seems to be the most likely solution to finding a long-term answer. And with the No. 2 pick in the 2025 draft, they will have at least one (if not both) of the consensus top QBs Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders available to them.
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Even if they do indeed choose to address QB in the draft, they need quality depth in case whoever they draft isn't ready to start right away.
Kenny Pickett brings starting experience as well as a low turnover rate that the departing Jameis Winston and Dorian Thompson-Robinson struggled with in 2024. The lack of aggressiveness, though, has been one of Pickett's greatest weaknesses, as he has yet to average over seven yards per attempt as a pro.
Overall, the Steelers shouldn't bat an eye at this move. While there are still people who think Pickett didn't get a fair shot at succeeding in Pittsburgh, he has shown no signs of being a needle-mover at the NFL level. We will see if he even gets a chance to compete for the Browns' starting QB gig this season.
Besides, the Steelers have their own QB issues to figure out.