The Pittsburgh Steelers had arguably the worst quarterback room in the league last season.
It’s hard to envision Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, or Mason Rudolph starting somewhere else.
Pickett’s numbers weren’t impressive, and he failed to live up to the hype and the rave reviews from the offseason.
All signs pointed towards the Steelers being ready to move on from their first-rounder and pursue a veteran QB, with the likes of Russell Wilson and Justin Fields as two likely candidates.
Now, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports that they’re not going to do that.
Instead, they’ve started their rebuilding process around the Pittsburgh product (Via Dov Kleiman).
𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭: The #Steelers have started the process of rebuilding around QB Kenny Pickett, per @JFowlerESPN
Pickett is likely to get another chance next season under new OC Arthur Smith.https://t.co/MYH0ihDyP6 https://t.co/VID3Zw0HBZ pic.twitter.com/rijqT6rCrt
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) March 3, 2024
Apparently, they want to give Pickett a chance to work under the new offensive coordinator, Arthur Smith.
To be fair, Pickett looked much better in the only full game he played without Matt Canada as his offensive coordinator, and Canada’s work with the offense left a lot to be desired.
Smith has found success with not-so-good and ever-struggling quarterbacks in the past, such as Ryan Tannehill, and one could argue that the Steelers have similar pieces on offense to his old Tennessee Titan teams.
Even so, patience seems to be running out among the fan base, and another failed season could make life difficult for HC Mike Tomlin.
This is a risky bet, and one the Steelers might come to regret if Pickett doesn’t turn the corner soon.