The Pittsburgh Steelers Kenny Pickett learned a hard lesson during Sunday Night Football in a steady driving rain in Miami. He had two opportunities to lead the Steelers to victory against the Miami Dolphins late in the game but came up short throwing two interceptions. Both interceptions were rookie mistakes, and both were the result of forcing the ball to Diontae Johnson with the game on the line.
Photo Credit: Abigail Dean / Pittsburgh Steelers
Pickett on third and sixteen with under five minutes to go, with the Steelers well within field goal range, forced a pass to Johnson. He was trying to make a big play and Jevon Holland was sitting on the route and the ball came right to the Dolphins captain. Johnson, who is the Steelers' number one receiver, was being targeted by the Dolphins as the primary target with the game on the line, and the defense was perfectly designed to bait Pickett. The Steelers' defense who was torched for the first 20 minutes and then played exceptionally from that point on, stiffened and gave Pickett a second chance with over two minutes to go.
Photo Credit: Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
The final drive started well, targeting the middle of the field and Pat Freiermuth late in the game again. The big tight end seems to always come up big at the end of games, but it makes you wonder why those routes are not called in the middle of the first half. After moving the ball to midfield, the rookie quarterback found Johnson who made a nifty move to get the ball deep into Miami Dolphins territory with 42 seconds on the clock.
On the final Pittsburgh play from scrimmage, Pickett rolled away from pressure, and it looked like he had an open field to pick up 10 to 15 yards with his feet, but he was laser focused on Johnson in the end zone. He threw the ball on the run, and maybe he expected Johnson to come back to the ball, or maybe he flat missed the throw, but Noah Igbinoghene made a circus catch at the goal line and a game that the Steelers desperately needed was over.
Photo Credit: Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Rookie quarterbacks are going to make mistakes and Pickett will have better days. The Steelers have the best record in one-score games since 2016 and with the loss, they fell to 42-21-1 in those games. Part of that stat was Ben Roethlisberger who was the best late-game quarterback in NFL history. If you trail or are tied and a drive wins the game, give me Roethlisberger. He started doing it as a rookie and was still doing it against Baltimore to clinch one last playoff spot in his final regular-season game last season.
Pickett got the Steelers into position twice, but ultimately in the Miami rain, he could not make the final play. He will see on tape if he uses his legs instead of throws to the end zone, the black and gold get at least three more shots to win the game. The rookie played like one on Sunday in Miami and while it cost the Steelers the game, it could be the difference in his career going forward.
Steelers Ben Roethlisberger and Jerome Bettis celebrate their Super Bowl XL victory over the Seattle Seahawks / Photo Credit: AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
Roethlisberger was magic from the beginning, but that is not normal. Steelers fans are incredibly spoiled to have had him for as long as we did. Most quarterbacks have to learn painful lessons like Sunday night's game before they learn how to perform late-game magic. As a fan, it hurts to lose a game like this but the quarterback is going to be all right and will not make the same mistake again. The Steelers offense is growing up together and part of the process is growing pains.
Photo Credit: Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers
This loss is going to sting Pickett and if he is who we all think he is, he will learn and come back better for the mistake. The Steelers' season will be on the line against the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles next week and after a bitter loss in Miami, Pittsburgh will find out just how much their young quarterback learned in South Florida from a miserable Sunday night lesson.
What do you think Steeler Nation? It hurts but are you staying positive that Pickett learned a valuable lesson? Comment below or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.
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