The Pittsburgh Steelers have had some questionable first-round draft picks over the last decade for various reasons. It ranged from the tragic injury sustained by Ryan Shazier that cut his career short, the decline of Devin Bush, and the way Najee Harris wasn't as explosive as he was in college. However, one of the biggest was the failure to properly develop quarterback Kenny Pickett.
Pickett was the Steelers' 2022 first-round selection and meant to be the heir-apparent to Super Bowl-winner Ben Roethlisberger. They also signed Mitch Trubisky with the hope that he could lead the team while Pickett developed behind him. Unfortunately, he wasn't successful, winning only one of the four games he started. Fans were outraged, and "We want Kenny" chants rang through the stadium.
Trubisky was benched halfway through the Week 4 game against the New York Jets in favor of Pickett. Unfortunately, Pickett couldn't consistently live up to the team's standards. Despite a propensity toward injury, he showed some flashes of excellence. In the end, he lost the starting role to Mason Rudolph. Steelers owner Art Rooney II recently said he didn't feel they learned much from the failed Pickett experiment.
Longtime Steelers reporter Ray Fittipaldo joined 93.7 The Fan's Morning Show and was asked about Rooney's comment and if he believed they didn't learn anything.
"They have to learn some lessons from that," said Fittipaldo. "Not reaching when you have a pick in the middle of the first round on a quarterback. You know, that's probably part of it. I think what he was tacitly saying was we can't control all the variables. Kenny didn't want to be here, they can't control that, so they had to trade him and move on and get what they can get or him. Listen, Payton Wilson is going to be a terrific player in this league if his knees hold up. So, in the end, I don't have a huge problem with Kenny Pickett and the way it went down. I have a huge problem with them taking him where took him, but in the end, they got as much as they can get for him. Eventually, you got to move on and take another shot at some point."
After it was clear Pickett couldn't lead the team, the Steelers signed Russell Wilson. Pickett was upset with the notion of being the backup to the then-nine-time Pro Bowler and requested a trade. After trading him to the Philadelphia Eagles for a third-round pick, Pittsburgh made another trade for Justin Fields. The Steelers used their new pick to select Payton Wilson.
Ironically, if Pickett had stayed in Pittsburgh, he would have had a shot at starting the first several games of the season as Wilson nursed a calf injury. Instead, he served as a backup to Jalen Hurts and only got to start one game during the 2024 season, playing in just 39% of the team's snaps over five games.
Steelers Once Again Have A Quarterback Dilemma
Wilson and Fields came to Pittsburgh on one-year contracts, so the team must fill that room again. Rooney told the media that he would like to keep one of them for continuity purposes. He said that with Arthur Smith entering his second season with the team, it would be good to get a clear picture of what they can do together.
It isn't clear which direction the team will go. Before the end-of-season slump, it seemed obvious it would be Wilson, but now most insiders think it is more likely to be Fields. There are also rumors that Wilson might sign with the Las Vegas Raiders since his old Head Coach Pete Carroll was hired there.
