After glimpsing his future at quarterback last Sunday, Pittsburgh will enter the Kenny Pickett era in Week 5.
The Steelers are expected to move forward with Pickett as the starting QB, replacing veteran Mitchell Trubisky, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Monday, according to a source.
Pittsburgh will move forward with what is seen as an inevitable decision after the team selected Pickett with the 20th overall pick in April. Trubisky won a three-way QB contest against Pickett and Mason Rudolph during training camp, but lost his job after four games.
Pickett’s first official start is no dandy, as the Steelers hit the road to face the Buffalo Bills (3-1) this Sunday.
Pickett’s promotion comes after he was thrust into Trubisky’s lineup midway through the Steelers’ Week 4 loss to the New York Jets.
“I thought we needed a spark, man,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said of Pickett’s appearance. “We didn’t do much in the first half, not enough offensively, and I thought he could give us a spark.”
The rookie QB provided that spark early in the second half. Pickett’s number was quickly called on his very first drive, diving forward on a stealthy QB on a fourth and a crucial on his own 31-year-old line. That drive ended with Pickett throwing his first interception, but he would soon give the Steelers their first lead of the game after another QB snuck into the end zone.
Pickett then orchestrated a 12-play, 87-yard drive that ended with his second rushing touchdown of the day to extend the Steelers lead. The former Pitt QB star was fearless in and out of the pocket, and showed good rapport with wide rookie George Pickens with some fine back shoulder throws.
The Steelers moved the ball well with Pickett at the helm, but rookie errors would soon surface. Pickett’s second INT was a bad pitch that helped a Jets comeback in the fourth quarter with 3:42 left in the game. His third pick came on a desperate Hail Mary in the end zone four points from the Jets’ 48-yard line.
At the end of the day, none of Pickett’s 13 pass attempts hit the turf. The 24-year-old completed 10 of those passes for 120 yards and the other three were caught by Jets defensemen. Pickett added 15 rushing yards on six attempts with those two scores.
Trubisky went 7 of 13 for 84 yards and an interception in the first half on Sunday. In more than three games as QB1 for the Steelers, Trubisky had just two touchdown passes.
The Chicago Bears’ first-round pick in 2017, Trubisky was the team’s starter for the majority of four seasons there, the last two marked by the same replacement rumors he faced with the Steelers. After a 2021 season spent with the Bills as an understudy for Josh Allen, Trubisky signed a two-year pact with Pittsburgh. After the Steelers won Pickett from Pittsburgh in the first round, it seemed inevitable that the local product would eventually take over as the franchise’s QB.
Now it happened after four games and three straight losses. The Pickett era in Pittsburgh is underway.