Pittsburgh Steelers fans don't exactly miss the name Kendrick Green. With no disrespect toward the Illinois product, his tenure in Pittsburgh wasn't pretty. The team started him in 15 games at center as a rookie in 2021. It was clear that the third-rounder wasn't ready for that. Even now-retired quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has since scoffed at the team's decision to put Green at center for the duration of a season.
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In Ben Roethlisberger's final NFL season, Kendrick Green was the team's starting center for 15 games.
In the midst of the Steelers' Week 2 Monday Night Football victory over the Cleveland Browns, some clear chants broke out at Acrisure Stadium. Fans lit up the stadium with "Fire Canada" shouts, obviously referring to Steelers Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada. Coincidentally enough, Green happened to tweet this out during the Steelers-Browns contest.
"People blaming play-callers when they don't know a **** thing about football in the first place it's crazy lmao," Green tweeted out during Monday's game.
Now, that is quite obviously in reference to Canada. Additionally, when a fan in the comments responded by saying,"[Kenny] Pickett sucks," Green responded with a comment of his own in defense of his former quarterback. Now he didn't exactly leave Pittsburgh as a fan favorite, as he failed to live up to the billing of being a Day 2 draft pick. The team tried to put him at fullback this summer, and that worked for a little bit. Still, it wasn't enough to keep him around.
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After Kevin Dotson and Kendrick Green battled it out for the left guard spot in 2022, the Steelers traded both of them away in a matter of days before the 2023 regular season.
Green struggled mightily in the 2021 season, as he was poor in nearly every facet at the center position. Fast forward to his second season, and well, he didn't even see the field once. That was after Kevin Dotson beat him out for the starting left guard spot ahead of the 2022 campaign. The writing was on the wall for Green this summer, as the team didn't really know where to put him along the offensive line.
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The front office soon traded Green to the Houston Texans ahead of the regular season, landing a 2025 sixth-round pick in the process. Thus far, he's been able to see the field for his new team due to a plethora of injuries along the Texans' offensive line. In two games, Green has played 84 snaps for the AFC South side, which has included one start.
While he didn't grade out particularly well, he actually was rated ahead of Steelers center Mason Cole for Week 1 according to Pro Football Focus. In fact, through two contests, Cole's 44.8 overall grade is third-worst amongst the 33 qualifying centers. The sixth-year veteran had a solid first season in Pittsburgh last year, but if things continue, the Steelers may have to look for an upgrade along the interior.
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Steelers center Mason Cole has struggled mightily to begin the 2023 season, as PFF rates him as the third-worst center in the NFL thus far.
While Green isn't exactly beloved in the city of Pittsburgh, fans can appreciate him defending his former coach and quarterback. The offense's continued struggles in Week 2 were quite concerning, and it seems like Canada is more of the same. The Steelers will get to see Green soon, as they travel to Houston to face the Texans in Week 4.
What are your thoughts on Green defending Canada and Pickett? Where does the draft pick of him rank as the worst in team history? Is the center position a concern for Pittsburgh for the long-term with Cole's early season struggles? What does the offense need to do in order to turn things around moving forward? Share your thoughts in the comment section below, yinz!
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