If the second half of the 2022 NFL season was an indication of what is to come for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the future is bright. After struggling in the early going, getting off to a 2-6 start and working through a quarterback change, something clicked in the second half of the season in Pittsburgh.
Key players, such as T.J. Watt, getting healthy certainly helped. But, the rapid development of rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett was a big factor as well. Pickett took over at halftime of the Steelers’ Week 4 game against the New York Jets. While he made some plays, untimely turnovers cost the team a win.
Turnovers were a major issue for Pickett in the early going, as he threw three against the Jets and eight in his first five appearances. Whatever Mike Tomlin and the coaching staff did with him during the team’s bye week, it worked, because Pickett looked like a different quarterback in the second half of the season.
The Steelers won seven of their last nine games, including the final four of the season. That helped Tomlin extend his streak of non-losing seasons to begin a head coaching career to 16 and Pickett’s turnaround in the ball security department was a big reason why.
In his final seven starts of the season, Pickett threw only one interception. The offense stayed on schedule and he made enough plays to help the team win some games with four game-winning drives and three fourth-quarter comebacks.
That kind of showing in Year 1 has the franchise very excited about what is to come. Tomlin is very excited about Pickett’s potential heading into his second season in the NFL and first as the set-in-stone starter for the franchise.
“I’m excited about Kenny individually in terms of the growth that he’s capable of making and, and what he’s willing to do to realize that,” Tomlin said at the league’s annual owners meetings in Phoenix. “I think I’m probably more excited about that because I’ve just been around him intimately now for 12 months. There was some anticipation things because of the close proximity that we’ve all talked about quite a bit, but the reality of having worked with him for 12 months, it’s just more evidence of what we should be excited about — his willingness to work, his professional approach, his maturity in processing. It’s exciting.”
While there were some bumps in the road as a rookie, that is expected. Pickett was thrown into the fire after Mitchell Trubisky failed to find much success. Instant results are rare for a rookie, but Pickett showed excellent growth throughout the season, which is what the Steelers wanted to see.
With no major changes to the coaching staff, as Matt Canada was retained as the offensive coordinator to the displeasure of some, Pickett should thrive in Year 2. Continuing in the system and with the same staff is key for a young player’s development. It is something not all young players are afforded, but it will provide Pickett with the opportunity to pick right up where he left off last season.
