After one of the ugliest ways to win a preseason game, the Pittsburgh Steelers prepare for their preseason finale against the Detroit Lions. As expected, the biggest storyline this off-season and throughout training camp has been the quarterback battle and who we could see line up under center in Cincinnati Week 1. While Mitch Trubisky has been floating at the top of the quarterback depth chart, rookie first-round pick, Kenny Pickett has lit the field on fire in his preseason action and has made strides towards his case for QB1. With the game against the Lions looming, this is the last audition for Trubisky, Pickett, and Mason Rudolph to solidify their spot on the depth chart come September.
Steelers' Mitch Trubisky takes reps with Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett in training camp at the team's South Side facility in Pittsburgh, PA. | Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
On Wednesday, Steelers’ Mitch Trubisky talked about his preparation and expectations heading into the final preseason match-up. Of course, one of the first questions Trubisky fielded was whether or not his preparation in camp and his production on the field warranted him the starting quarterback spot. Trubisky explained:
“I think I have. Just how I carry myself every day, what I’ve done on the practice field. Would like to do more last game obviously, but I hopefully will get another opportunity this week to show that I should be and it’s your whole body of work, so everything I’ve done in my career up until this point, what I’ve done in minicamp, the practices, at Latrobe and in the preseason games. It wasn’t the best showing last week as a unit and for myself, so all you can do is control today and get better from there and that’s what I’m trying to do and have a great week.”
Relatively speaking, Trubisky hasn’t been bad in his preseason action. While no Steelers quarterback has yet to throw an interception so far, Trubisky sits in the middle of the pack in terms of numbers. For instance, he holds a 60 percent completion rating, averaging 8.2 yards per pass, and a 108.5 quarterback rating. Although his sample size is significantly smaller than Pickett and Rudolph, those are numbers an offensive coordinator could live with heading into Week 1.
Comparing those to the other candidates, Pickett has an 86.4 percent completion rating, is averaging 7.8 yards per pass, and has a 136.8 quarterback rating. Rudolph has a 72.2 percent completion rating, is averaging 6.1 yards per pass, and has a 106.2 quarterback rating.
Steelers' Mitch Trubisky takes reps in the red zone in camp while Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett watch. | Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
To help prove his case for the starting role, Trubisky is hungry for more reps in live action. As a presumed starter, he is expected to only see the field for the first few drives. But with such an intensified battle culminating in a matter of days, each quarterback contestant should see a more expanded role. Therefore, Trubisky is eager to increase his time on the field this Sunday:
“It’s tough to gauge [how many reps Trubisky wants]. It’s always different in the first quarter of a preseason game. You’re not really having a real game plan. We’ll have more of one this week. You’re not really showing everything that you have. You’re really just trying to establish a rhythm and it takes a whole unit, not just a quarterback. It’s all 11 guys for successful play to go down and score as a unit, so I think more than anything we’re trying to find a rhythm. I got three drives last week, we’ll see how many I get this week.”
While we know how head coach Mike Tomlin handles depth charts, position battles, and when to declare a winner in any respect, the ‘deadline’ for the quarterback announcement is rapidly approaching. Therefore, the contenders and fans alike are getting fairly antsy in which way Tomlin will go against the Cincinnati Bengals.
As we await to hear the final verdict, Trubisky is careful not to get ahead of himself. He understands that, although he’s currently listed as the starter on the practice depth chart, nothing is confirmed. When he was asked about what he’s heard of his status of starting quarterback heading into the regular season, Trubisky was quick to stay humble and not pronounce himself as the winner quite yet. When asked about if he thinks he’ll be taking the starting reps against the Lions, Trubisky simply said:
“Yes.” He continued by saying, “I can only assume that I’m going out to practice today. I’m going to be starting, and just try to get better.” Trubisky finished by saying, “I don’t know. There’s got to be some announcement before game one, so we’ll see.”
While Pickett has been impressive so far this preseason, the Steelers aren’t quick to throw a rookie quarterback as a starter in the first regular season game; history speaks for itself. Even if we think back to Ben Roethlisberger, it took injuries to Tommy Maddox and Charlie Batch for him to get playing time. Obviously, we all know how that 2004 season ended. Looking at the rest of the league, the Steelers aren’t alone in not being quick to list a rookie quarterback as QB1.
Looking at the past decade, of 38 quarterbacks selected in the first round, only 15 started their first regular season game. The closest the Steelers have ever been to starting a rookie quarterback in history was in 1967 when Kent Nix was thrust into the spotlight after Bill Nelsen was injured in the first game against the Chicago Bears.
Steelers' Kenny Pickett (#8) and Mitch Trubisky (#10) get ready for their first preseason game of 2022 against the Seattle Seahawks. | Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
In short, the Steelers shouldn’t feel rushed to get Pickett on the field as a starter. If you were to ask me who I’d expect to see as QB1 on September 11th, I’d put my money on Trubisky. We know Tomlin isn’t one for doing things out of the ordinary and starting Pickett as a rookie in Week 1 would certainly be out of the ordinary. Not to mention, that formula isn’t one that is successful and sustainable. Although he hasn’t had the number of reps to show big numbers in the preseason, look for Trubisky to be listed as QB1 heading into the first regular season match-up.
Who do you think will start in Week 1? When do you think we’ll see Pickett start at quarterback? Let us know in the comments below!
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