Pittsburgh Steelers' young quarterback Kenny Pickett had a rollercoaster ride of a rookie year. He started training camp as the third string, then became the starter after he replaced Mitch Trubisky at halftime in Week 4. He suffered a pair of concussions and finally finished the season 7-5 as a starter. While the organization is clearly set to move forward with him as the signal-caller of the future, some people still have questions about whether he should be the guy going forward.
Photo Credit: Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (@JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett (8) lined up with Najee Harris (22) in the backfield against the New York Jets.
Fox Sports' Colin Cowherd recently had 12-year NFL veteran defensive tackle Cam Heyward on his show The Herd and while in the veteran radio host's evaluation, Pickett proved he can do enough to win games at the pro level, he didn't see enough 'juice' in year one. He asked the Steelers' three-time All-Pro nominee what behind-the-scenes things he doesn't have access to make Heyward and the team confident in him going forward:
"When you look at the way he prepares and he gets after it in the film room and on the field, it's night and day from where he was in training camp," Heyward said. "It's not like he's resting on his laurels and accepting anything. He understands he can be better and the worker's mentality really sets him apart. Because you can be an all-time great talent, but if you don't back it up with your preparation, you're really going to set yourself back."
Photo Credit: The Herd with Colin Cowherd YouTube
Steelers' Cameron Heyward joined The Herd to chat about Kenny Pickett, Mike Tomlin, and his own legacy in the sport.
Why Cam Heyward Knows The Steelers Have Found "The Guy"
Before when asked about when he knew Pickett was the guy, it was for his command of the offense in two-minute drills in practice. Again it was that clutch gene that impressed Heyward in games down the stretch when the team needed their quarterback to come up big:
"You really saw in those last couple of weeks when we really needed those wins, he came through," he said about Pickett's ability to rise to the occasion. "You look at the Vegas game, we needed a drive for him to go 80 yards, and then in the Baltimore game, another 80 yards. In the season finale against the Browns, he's making passes to my little brother [Connor Heyward], but he's having fun doing it and he's really growing in that approach."
Photo Credit: JORDAN SCHOFIELD / STEELER NATION (TWITTER: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett shows off his mobility by avoiding the rush against the New Orleans Saints.
While the teams at the top of this year's NFL Draft fret over the decision on which of the guys in the star-studded class to make their next signal-caller, the Steelers should be happy they don't have to wade into this mess. They have Pickett and he's shown the ability to battle adversity along with a constant will to get better. He's already taking every opportunity he can to try and help himself and the team get better while showing leadership beyond his years.
The team has already beefed up the offensive line with some aggressive moves in free agency and now turns to the draft to see how it can improve the roster as a whole, but also potentially with an eye for another weapon to help out their second-year signal-caller.
So Steeler Nation, do you think Pickett has what it takes to be a high-level quarterback in the league? What do you think of Heyward's comments? Let us know in the comments or on social media.
#SteelerNation
