With the Pittsburgh Steelers playing on Monday Night Football in Week 15, Steelers fans were able to kick up their feet and watch a crowded slate of NFL games. One player fans had their eye on was 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett, who was making his first start on the Las Vegas Raiders.
Some Steelers fans insisted the team gave up on Pickett too soon, and if only he hadn't been hamstrung by former offensive coordinator Matt Canada, he could have been 'the guy'. I can definitely say that this isn't the case.
Pickett wasn't just bad against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 15; his performance was the single-worst quarterback game we've witnessed in the NFL this season.
Pickett completed just 15 of 25 passes for a mere 64 yards (2.6 yards per attempt) while throwing an interception and getting sacked four times. The former Pitt product earned a dismal 6.2 QBR and a 47.9 passer rating in Week 15. But his astoundingly bad production only tells half the story.
In this contest, Pickett took 35 sack yards, meaning that, on 29 drop-backs, the fourth-year quarterback managed 29 net passing yards (1.0 net passing yards per drop-back). This is almost an impossible feat in the worst possible way.
As a result of his exruciating performance, the Raiders didn't earn so much as a field goal in the 31-0 shutout loss to the Eagles. Now, Steelers fans can finally feel vindicated in the team's decision to cut bait with Pickett during the 2024 offseason.
The Pittsburgh Steelers were right to move on from QB Kenny Pickett
We can debate all day about whether Kenny Pickett was a good gamble for the Steelers in the 2022 NFL Draft. Pickett was an old quarterback prospect with one year of good production and some major red flags (like the smallest hands we've ever seen from the QB position).
Unfortunately, former general manager Kevin Colbert made it his mission to leave the Steelers with a quarterback with his final first-round draft pick. Thankfully, the new management had the sense to move on from Pickett when they did.
Pickett was never starter material in my book. He simply doesn't possess the traits, upside, and arm talent that teams desire in a franchise quarterback. However, I'm not even sure if he's backup material at this point. The Raiders' offense couldn't function without him.
In Week 15, Pickett led his team to just seven total first downs while going three-of-twelve on third downs. The Raiders gained just 75 total yards on 42 plays against the Eagles with a pathetic 1.8 yards per play to show for it, per ESPN stats.
By now, it's clear that Kenny Pickett was never going to be a franchise quarterback, and Pittsburgh Steelers fans can take comfort in knowing their team did the right thing by moving on from this failed draft pick.