Steelers' Kenny Pickett Has Lost His Mojo And He May Need A Trip To The Bench To Find It

The Pittsburgh Steelers lost to the Cleveland Browns on Sunday afternoon. They have been playing with fire in one-score games. In Week 11, they finally ran out of Kenny Pickett's magic and paid for it dearly. The Steelers split with the Browns, and at 6-4, they are essentially one game behind the Baltimore Ravens and Browns. A division crown will now require sweeping the Cincinnati Bengals to set up a potential Week 18 showdown for the AFC North in Baltimore.

The Steelers' defense played well enough to win, but they lost to a rookie quarterback for the second time in 2023. Mike Tomlin has a big decision to make at this point. Pickett was money in the fourth quarter for the Steelers for all his current faults. 

On Sunday, he put together four quarters of putrid football in a close game, and now Pittsburgh has a real problem if they want to get into the AFC Playoffs.

Pickett still has his signature moxie. He demonstrated that on a quarterback sneak early in the game when he lost his helmet and fought for half a yard. However, he barely broke 100 yards passing for the second game in a row. Pickett anticipated the wrong choice route multiple times with Diontae Johnson. George Pickens was singled up numerous times and did not take advantage of it. That is not entirely true; he did not try to exploit it. 

Social Media was not very kind to the Steelers' signal-caller on Sunday. Pickett has lived on a razor's edge with his supporters. The popular trope is that if he can put together one drive to win the game, it must be Matt Canada's scheme that doesn't allow him to succeed. Canada is not without blame, but Pickett had one of his worst games as a professional on Sunday in Cleveland. 

Former Steelers offensive lineman, Trai Essex, astutely pointed out that the built-in Canada excuse is no longer valid. Pickett has to be held accountable for his regression. The plays are bad, but the decision-making is worse. 

"I would give him a pass if there weren’t wide-open WRs running around and inaccurate throws being thrown," Essex said.

Pickett is an easy player to root for but has clearly gone backward as a quarterback this season. The 2022 rookie version had swagger and an endless supply of moxie. He still has grit, but his confidence as a quarterback is gone. He is still a better thrower of football than Tim Tebow ever was, but the similarity in results is starting to become uncomfortable. 

Andrew Fillipponi, who was once the biggest Pickett fan on the planet, has jumped off his bandwagon. The Steelers, barring a major catastrophe, will probably find a way to the AFC playoffs based on their current strength of schedule. Pickett has at least two more years with Pittsburgh, and giving up on him is not really an option. 

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The support for signing a proven quarterback like Kyler Murray or drafting another quarterback in the twenties both have their issues. Murray would put the Steelers way over the salary cap and force them to gut the team. Drafting a quarterback in the twenties could put the Steelers in the same position in two years if they get it wrong and send them spiraling toward another quarter-century franchise quarterback drought. 

Bill Cowher faced this situation with Kordell Stewart. Stewart was maddeningly inconsistent with incredible highs, like leading his team to two AFC Championship games. He also had horrible lows, including being benched for Mike Tomczak in 1999 and Kent Graham for the beginning of the 2000 season. The decision to bench him in 1999 yielded more effective play when he regained the job and a trip to the 2001 AFC Championship game.   

Tomlin has a chance to right the ship. Mitch Trubisky is not a great NFL quarterback, but he is Tom Brady compared to Graham. If Pickett is forced to watch from the sidelines, it could be just the tonic he needs to cure his bizarre vision issues. The 2023 NFL throws quarterbacks away too quickly. Pickett still has the ability. He has lost his field vision. More playing time will not cure that issue. 

He doesn't need to sit for an extended period, maybe even just a half.  It will drive a gym rat like Pickett up the wall to be healthy and on the sideline. It also could snap him out of his current funk. The issue will not be resolved by continuing to throw him out there and hope it gets better. Pickett has real talent, but it will go to waste unless someone steps in to help him. The question is if Tomlin and Canada have the fortitude to make what will be an unpopular decision to get Pickett back on track. 

What do you think, Steeler Nation? What should Pittsburgh's coaching staff do to try to fix Pickett in 2023? Please comment below or on my Twitter/X: @thebubbasq. 

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