Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett is becoming a trendy pick to take a leap forward in year two and show he belongs in the upper echelon of quarterbacks in the AFC in 2023. One of the things the 25-year-old in June has been doing to help him make that step according to his personal quarterback guru Tony Racioppi, is put on weight.
Credit: Stefan Jeremiah
Racioppi told the hosts on 93.7 The Fan's Morning Show that Pickett has gained 13 pounds in the offseason already to get him up to about 226. This is closer to the weight he should be playing at according to the quarterback coach, who among his many jobs working with signal-callers is an instructor at the annual Manning Passing Academy.
"He looks great, it's not like he went down ate cheeseburgers and sat on his butt," Racioppi said. "He put some size on and got strong."
The Sporting News
Part of Kenny Pickett's offseason was reconnecting with coaches at his alma mater to develop a training program.
Racioppi said the first part of Pickett's offseason training was getting a workout program from the strength and conditioning coaches he worked with in college at the University of Pittsburgh. Pickett had a goal of getting closer to 225 lbs. and with his work ethic, Racioppi knew it was going to happen.
"He started it [in Pittsburgh] and then when he came down to Florida for two and a half months, he gave that program to the guys who do the training at the facility I work at and he got after it," he said. "He's one of those dudes who it's like here are my goals, I'm working and I'm not stopping till I hit them. That guy said he wanted to be 225, 226 and he's sitting at 226 right now."
Steelers QB1 Finding The Right Balance In Training
A big part of Pickett's game is predicated on his ability to move around either in the pocket or outside of it to set him up to throw the ball down the field. His ability to run the football in particular was a nice surprise to Ben Roethlisberger, and while putting on weight, keeping those elements that are a big part of his arsenal of tools.
"It's finding the right balance between putting on size and being strong to stay healthy through a season, but also at the same time, not get too big that he loses the athleticism which is such a big part of his game," Racioppi said. "We tried to park it at a certain weight that he felt great physically, but at the same time, he still moves really well."
Pickett weighed in at 217 lbs at the NFL Scouting Combine last year. According to Racioppi, that was due to a training focus on the combine versus the prep to be a football player and coming to the Steelers for his first offseason.
"You're just trying to learn the playbook and get with teammates to learn the process. He probably got too light because of that," Racioppi said. "Now he's able to have a full offseason to try and be a football player again. He's good around that weight (225)."
Miami Herald
Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett is picked off by Miami Dolphins safety Jevon Holland on a pass intended for Diontae Johnson.
The other focus for Pickett in his training with Racioppi was finding ways he can limit the mistakes using a method employed by all-time great Peyton Manning. Pickett looked at all the incompletions and interceptions to assess with the help of coaches Mike Tomlin, Matt Canada, and Mike Sullivan whether his misses were questionable decision-making or fundamental. Racioppi said he's already seen him make strides in this facet and having a stronger arm has allowed him to put more velocity on the ball.
What do you think of Racioppi's analysis? Does it give you more confidence in Pickett going forward? Comment below!
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