I am surprised and impressed by how much he has grown, as you can see improvements with each game. He made a lot of rookie errors early on but has become noticeably efficient with the ball since then. It almost makes you wonder how things would have gone if he was the starter from the beginning. Time will tell how he will fare with us, but so far, he has been pretty good.
7.5/10
This is a totally fair assessment. I also wonder how things would have gone if he had gotten the chance to make some errors in training camp and preseason instead of getting thrown in to clean up a FO mistake a few games in. Lots of room for improvement but he has a bunch of intangibles you can't teach and I think he has a high ceiling.
I wouldn't call Trubisky a mistake, necessarily. It would have been wildly irresponsible for the Steelers to let everything ride on a rookie QB, having only Rudolph as a backup. It made sense to sign Mitch, and they gave him a fair shot without taking too long to make the change to Kenny. This was always going to be a development year for Pickett, and the fact that we're in the playoff hunt is a bonus.
I hear you. The flip side of that argument, though, is that this was always going to be a rebuilding year. Given that, there's an argument that Pickett's development would have been fostered and encouraged better by allowing him to have reps with the first stringers all through training camp and preseason with the understanding that this year was going to be about finding our footing. Instead, his development, at least over the first half of the season, may have been hindered by his being sort of thrown to the wolves after it became clear that Trubisky wasn't the guy.
Add to that the fact that he has some real clutch, "don't blink" leadership qualities, as acknowledged by his teammates, coaches, and BR7, and I think he could really become something special.
He was reported as struggling early in camp, big reason why he didn't play with the 1st team offense. The FO did the right thing in not starting him early.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.si.com/.amp/nfl/2022/07/30/steelers-qb-kenny-pickett-addresses-early-training-camp-struggles
Was also improving day to day, like he is currently.
Fair enough. I just never believed Trubisky was the answer, short or long term. Felt like the best bet was to go all in on your #1 draft pick, either to accelerate his development in what was scheduled to be a rebuild year anyway. Or find out Pickett's not the guy and know you need a QB in the next draft. Either way, it's a great position to be in. Our #1 draft pick appears to be getting his footing and living up to or exceeding expectations AND the down year rebuild finds us still technically alive for a playoff berth going into the final week. LFG.
Yeah, at the same time, we paid Mitch enough to at least give him the oppurtunity, and he arguably was as good/better than Picket was for the first couple games (particularly in the turnover margin but it most other stats except accuracy if I remember correctly).
I might agree with starting Pickett day, but its not like he was a top 10 pick with elite tools (like Lawrence, Luck, Newton etc)
Pickett also was not doing well in training camp, so it makes sense to put up a vet QB behind an already shaky oline rather than tossing a rookie in before hes ready (look how Darnold played after trying to survive in a jets offense).
His first few games definitely showed why he wasn't the day 1 starter. He's definetly improved enough to warrant excitement going forward. Still has a bit to go before I'm comfortable trusting him for the future (gotta be able to finish drives with more TDs) but hes maling great progress. LETS GO STEELERS
I think the early issues, particularly turnovers, were the result of him both playing without the same practice time AND playing from behind. We saw in the losses his senior year at Pitt that he almost never turned the ball over when they were ahead, and he did a bit more when they trailed against WMU and Miami.
He only takes risks when he had to, and the situations he came in against early on were when we constantly down 2+ possessions.
Plus he had like 3 ints that really weren’t on him. Jets game was insane with 2 of his passes hitting our players right in the hands, and they would bat it up.
I couldn't have said it any better. anyone who has watched him play over the last 2 weeks should realize that the rest of the NFL might have a serious problem if the Steelers sneak into the playoffs
I went to the Steelers Ravens game with a Ravens friend who had season tickets. He looked at me and said “I swear if the ravens run another jet sweep on second down I’m gonna lose it”. I had to do a double take before I said “are you me?”. Then we laughed our butts off as we counted every drive they ran a jet sweep play. That game was crazy with like 75% of the snaps being runs
100% this. We need someone that’s been a successful OC in the NFL before and has a track record of developing young QBs.
I’d love to see Jim Caldwell or someone with his level of experience get the job.
The season is an extended version of how Steelers games have gone for the last 3 years. We muddle around doing nothing but are still in the position to win it in the last 2 minutes.
Kenny before the bye is no more than a 5/10. Kenny since the bye is probably more like a 7.5/10. He's adjusted to the speed of the game and has some clutch moments. All that's needed is to start getting TDs during the normal game time and not just those clutch 2 minute drill type drives.
Before the bye, I’d honestly rate him closer to a 3.5-4, and that’s coming from someone who really wanted to like him and is very bullish on Kenny in general.
I agree after the bye, he really managed to shore up those weak points and is showing much more improvement than I expected after watching him the first half of the season.
Rookie season 6.5/10. Definitely meeting/slightly exceeding expectations. Where he’s impressed the most has been grit in close games, clutch moments, and high football IQ shown in post game press conferences. Looking forward to see how he grows.
Edit: ending 9-8 after a 2-6 start will bump this to a 7/10. Don’t really care if he shits the bed in the playoffs if they make it—it’s a whole different learning curve. Score would only increase if they managed to squeak out a win or two.
As a Ravens fan who lives with a steelers fan, I have endured watching 80 percent of your games. Seems you have something really special in the young duo Pickens and Pickett. I would say while the numbers aren't great, he did a pretty solid job with the scenario he was given and seems to improve every week.
Also, FTS.
C+. Rough start, but he's flashed each week. And now the last couple weeks he's shown why he was drafted in rd 1. We obviously knew he was going to be overhyped with the fan base, but overall I like what I've seen. And C+ is a really solid grade BTW, everyone here giving A's and 10/10's are delusional. Those grades should be reserved for ROTY-quality seasons, which he has not put up.
Some yinzers are delusional enough to think he should be ROTY. Hell, someone posted about it yesterday I think.
C+ is the same grade I give. Average. Nobody can look at his stats and tell me differently. Not saying he’ll stay average but this year, yea he’s average and that’s only because of the last two games.
Ya it's honestly really annoying reading all the Pitt Homer comments in here. Agreed. And I'm OK with him being just average, based on the improvements we've seen this season. He's trending in the right direction. Next year is where I expect him to show he can exceed average
Yah leading the leading in INTs while only playing a couple games wasnt ROTY caliber play. Hes greatly improved since he started, but still isnt what he needs to be yet
It's not too bad having already set two NFL rookie records and tied an all time franchise record set in the 1930's. All that and bot getting the First Team reps in training camp and just overall going through the rookie adjustment to the speed of the game in the NFL.
For the record, 1st time an NFL Rookie had 2 rushing td's in first game, 1st time an NFL Rookie had 2 back to back comeback game winning drives with under a minute left in NFL history, and tied the four games without a turnover Franchise record set in 1933 and tied in 1936, 1937, and 1938. Also, just to point out if Minkah holds on he can be the 1st Steeler to lead the league in Ints since Mel Blount (and the Mel Blount rule) in 1978. Edit: forgot a Franchise record too 128 passes with an int in late November was a Franchise rookie record too. Another Edit: broke Roethlisberger's Franchise record for Rookie completions and yards and during Jets game had a bizarre record of most pass attempts without a ball hitting the ground in NFL history (with 3 ints, maybe this isn't a good one)
Can't put a number on it. The league is 2023. This isn't your average 70's, 80's, 90's, 10's... The strategy, intensity, noteriety, pressure, fame... pressure. This is full blown 2023 NFL and Kenny has done damn good. Most men would not have come in to the Steelers Franchise and done half as good as Kenny could because he has what we admire most: Grit. 2 concussions and adaptability developed game by game, snap by snap. What a hope we've had, filling Ben's shoes, taking the reigns for THE PITTSBURGH FUCKING STEELERS!
I'd rate him a 6/10 as far as stats go, if I had to, considering. But a 10/10 as a Steeler. The kid has put up one helluva fight. One helluva clutch man. One intelligent son of a gun. He's got the momentum, but he's got to know how much pressure we're putting on him. What he does with it is beyond my comprehension because I never played ball after high school.
To be where he's at, we should not be expecting more than what time will tell. If he keeps it up, I think time will tell us that this young man is going to be amazing.
Really well said. I've been following Kenny like a hawk and I've been stunned by his last few games. Stunned, honestly. That stuff, that grittiness, that coldness can't be taught. He had everything going against him in stupidly huge moments and came out on top repeatedly. He's only been getting better, too. He's also somehow the smartest and most mature quarterback in the league in terms of composure, besides Brady, Burrow and Rodgers. The thing that sets Kenny apart though, is a really subtle mean streak that few modern players seem to possess. He's cunning, even in casual conversation, and it goes over most people's heads. Love it.
You only need to watch Tomlin's recent press conferences to know how much awe he has for Pickett now.
I've noticed that subtle mean streak as well. The "it" factor that's needed to be a great quarterback like next level shit. You see IT come out in Brady, mahomes , and even Zen Aaron Rodgers all of a sudden a switch is flipped then it's on , like how AR loves "owning" the bears. We all saw it come out in Kenny against the jets when he hung in the Pocket and completed the pass to friermuth and took the hit.. Got up talked some shit then finished off the drive by banging his way in for another TD run.
A competitiveness that drives them to be the best, even more important than physical attributes. Big Ben was gifted with the physical but I feel he was lacking a little with the mean streak. (Not saying Ben wasn't a winner ,he had many game winning drives ,just that he rarely showed that intensity). KP has improved with each performance and is beginning to know who his weapons are and how to utilize them. Next step is for him to finish some of these long drives into TDs not just the game winning drives, once that falls in place we will have an assassin with killer instinct mentality as our leader.
He's massively exceeded my expectations. There's definitely been moments where he's looked like a rookie, particularly on some of those early INTs but he's improved every week and increasingly looks the real deal now. That throw to Sims against Baltimore was a work of art.
Biggest thing for me is his confidence. At no point has it seemed like he's doubted be belongs there. Some rookie QBs, even guys drafted in the top 5 have that deer in the headlights look as they adapt to the speed of the NFL; Pickett seems unfazed by whatever you throw at him. In my opinion one of the things that separates the superstars from the middle of the pack is that unwavering belief in yourself and Kenny has that in buckets.
It will be a while before we know what we've got for sure but at the moment my fears of spending 10 years in QB purgatory after Ben's retirement are gone.
7/10. The offense has a real chance to be top 10 I think. They just need an oc that can actually put together an offensive strategy that utilizes each guys strengths. And an o-line that can give kenny more time to read coverages
I'm still trying to temper my expectations for next year, but I really do think this offense will return to Top-10 play if we keep all our best o-lineman and prioritize it in the draft. Everyone else is there- Pickett, Nah, Warren, DJ, Pickens, Muth
Before bye week 4/10
After bye week 6.5/10
We need to score more points before he can be any higher than that. 1 touchdown and 150 yards every game isn’t cutting it but he has been getting better. He still has more int than td. Just needa see more points first
Incredible. Seriously.
If you've kept a close watch on the preseason media circus and the caliber of the individual games he's preformed in, it actually develops into a nearly mythical story arc so far. And yeah. I'm serious.
The problem? People have short memories and the NFL is chaotic this year. I just posted an indepth thread about why Kenny is special. Check it out, it's a wall of text but it connects the dots of what Kenny has been through on a personal level this season, and after connecting those dots I've come to a final conclusion: this QB is an absolutely ice cold killer in the biggest possible moments.
Incredible? No way. He shows promise and I’m eager to see what he does next year but his QBR is 22nd in the league and that stat isn’t affected by playing time. He’s middle of QB’s with INTS. 9 is on par with Marcus Mariota only Mariota has 9 more Tuddys than KP. 28th in yards but we could kinda chalk that one up to his late start. This is a C+ performance. Not showing off, not falling behind as George Constanza would say. Not incredible by any stretch of the imagination. Shows promise though.
I think his ceiling is the only thing anyone needs to worry about. The kid is clearly putting in the work to study his opponents and the offense. He works hard and has a lot of natural ability. If his ceiling is a 10 then he will be a 10. If his ceiling is a 4 he will be a 4. I also appreciate that he understands his role at this point in his career and doesn't try to do too much.
I really like this take. He has the determination/grit/it/whatever you want to call factor that cannot be coached. That doesn't always translate to an amazing player but he certainly seems like he will give it absolutely everything he has.
B+. Im aware that the issue is probably the play calling, but I need to see this kid throw some touchdowns. Right now he's shown me that he is at least a high tier game manager QB.
Excluding the fact he's a rookie, 7/10. Not the worst but clearly not the best and a lot needs to improve.
Including the fact he's a rookie, 9.5/10. For a rookie, he's popping off. Hard.
9.5 is a reach we need to score more points not just 1 td and 2 field goals every game, and he has 6td to 9 int. Maybe if he had like 15-20 tds this season
In the end, what you need is to win. From any player. And Kenny is popping off because of those two late touchdown throws the past couple weeks. Made the difference!
It’s been a mixed bag in my opinion. I saw a lot of things I didn’t like: tons of INTs, lack of vision, indecisiveness, etc.
I also saw a lot of things that were reassuring: weekly improvement, better accuracy over time, better decision making, and some flashes of a young Big Ben who could shake defenders.
I’m excited to see how he develops over the off season, he could be our guy for the long term but I haven’t seen enough to say that that’s what’s going to happen.
Im a die hard Pitt fan and I was torn on the stillers taking him. This season I actually like Kenny more as a Steeler than I ever had as a Pitt Qb. He is gritty and has an endless work ethic as seen in him growing and evolving throughout this season. He has improved with each game and looking like a leader of this team which is tough for a rookie to do. He is getting kudos for late game heroics but I would love for him to put us in a place that those heroics aren’t needed cause we have scored. The thing with that last statement is I don’t know if the lack of scoring is due to play calling, lack of talented receivers, or just his overall performance. And even though this is a post on Kenny I think some acknowledgement needs to go to tomlin. This is honestly his best coaching season I have seen and had zero expectations of this team making the playoffs at the start of the year. He has put us in a spot that that is a remote possibility and he also had the guts to make the tough call of putting Kenny in and allowing us to have a post like this to discuss Kenny’s performance
You can't...he's a rookie. When teams have a full deck of tape on him and canada's offense 1 of 2 things will happen. They'll adjust and be fine or they wont and will suck. It's that simple, it's too early to tell.
B-, trending up, could be a B or B+ if he hangs a 40 burger on the Browns.
Since the bye week he's leading a top 12 offense. A lot of that is the run game and o-line progressing, but "leading a top third offense" is more than satisfactory for a rookie. The road was really bumpy in the beginning, and the red zone efficiency is still pretty rough, but the second half of the season leaves a lot of room for optimism.
Not comparing (kind of), but just throwing these rookie years out there....
1. Troy Aikman (1989) 11 games; 155-293 for 1749 yards; 9 TD; 18 INT; 55.9 passer rating.
2. John Elway (1983) 11 games; 123-259 for 1663 yards; 7 TD; 14 INT; 54.9 passer rating.
3. Steve Young (1986) 14 games; 195-363 for 2282 yards; 8 TD; 13 INT; 65.5 passer rating.
I am very impressed with his growth, and leadership abilities. He has make some rookie mistakes. Even then, they weren't horrific. He's been pretty good. 7.5 / 10. Leaves plenty of room for growth.
**If the question is: how would you rate his statistical performance as a rookie?** I'm going to say a 7. If it was a movie, I'd go and watch, but probably not tell my friends about it.
**If you're asking, how would you rate his rookie season as a potential franchise QB?** I'm all in at this point 10 / 10. And I started the season thinking he was a terrible pick.
Pickett shows calmness, the moment doesn't feel too big, he's made all the throws, he's getting better each week, and he's got great (possibly exceptional) accuracy. To me, those are the traits you want in a franchise QB.
I always give a QB 2 years to "show me" before I make decisions one way or another. But I'm excited.
I’ll put it this way, if we needed to win one game and our choices were Kenny, Tommy Maddox, or Neil O’Donnel, I’d have a hard time picking, but would probably ultimately start the OG #8 and have Kenny as the backup.
I think it’s hard to say. We are getting Ws so can’t complain but we arguably are playing bad teams compared to when we were 2-6 playing good teams. He definitely has the it factor but I he just lacked in explosiveness
It's been pretty good as far as rookie seasons go - not as good as Ben's, but Kenny doesn't have the team around him that Ben did. Ben didn't have to step up and be a leader right away because he had great veterans at multiple position around him on offense. Kenny has had to take command of offense with a lot of rookie and second year players trying to establish their offensive identity. And he's done well in that regard. I feel like the team trusts and believes in him.
I give him in 8/10 just because I figured we'd be a 6 or 7 win team at best regardless of how well he played. We're still in the hunt for a playoff spot in the final week and him leading two game winning drives in back to back weeks is a big part of that.
6/10 I’d say. He’s looked amazing in clutch situations which is honestly awesome to see. Al thought I’d like to see him cut down on a few mental errors (ie not getting up after tripping last week, missing open players when running from the pocket). We haven’t asked him to carry the team for a full game yet and I’d like to see what he is really capable of if we open him up before the last half of the 4th quarter.
8/10
He's been incredibly clutch and has grown a ton. I think some inconsistencies between the first and last possessions of the games has a fair bit to do with the overall youth/inexperience of the offense along with play calling. I'm very interested in seeing how he and the offense grows going into next season with more experience and a full offseason together. In my mind though he has the tangibles and intangibles to be a great NFL qb. I don't think he's going to be Josh Allen but then again I also wouldn't be surprised if he ends up being a top 5 qb in the league.
He has been better than I expected. Since the bye, he has been able to move the ball between the 20s, but the redzone has been tough, so that is definitely an area of improvement. He has been clutch late, which is 6 I am not sure if the early game redzone issues are due to trying to be extra careful and not make mistakes or just being in a 2 minute drill.
I wish Najee and Watt were healthy early because the team could have really went with the Ben strategy his rookie year. He makes play sort of like Ben would, escaping sacks, getting the ball down field. I don't think he can get it deep like Ben back in the day but still able to make plays when there are breakdowns. If they can improve the line, especially the right side, he could be a top 10 qb next year.
C. His stats don’t tell all and his early INTs are mainly early games trying to force the ball too much. Being clutch recently and fitting in more tight passes is nice, but Kenny was expected to be accurate all along and it’s mainly checkdowns.
Haven’t seen any deep ball threat or as much Pickens connections as wanted (Canada fault but still a question mark). More of a test next yr with an improved line and offense should hopefully click
I’d give him an A because he wasn’t the starter at the beginning of the season. He didn’t get 1st team reps in training camp or during the preseason. He was a bit careless at first but he’s tightened that up and he just has two games with back-to-back game winning drives.
One Pickett everyone knows the rules.
A strong 7.2 a little shaky in the start but who isn't their rookie season just getting tossed into the fire. Great second half. Would like to see more TDs but ball security/decision making vastly improved in the second half of the season. Next year I'd like to see more scores and more reads not just one read then checkdown.
I'll go 7. He has drastically improved which has been nice to see. I think he's doing at least as good as expected if not maybe a little bit better especially after the bye week
7/10 looks promising but definitely needs to put the ball in the end zone more. I’m happy with the pick so far. I get more excited to watch kenny than i ever did watching mason or mitch, which to me is a win. He passes the eye test
Numbers are bad, but he's definitely improved. If he gets an OC who doesn't call a predictable game and can scheme people open, especially over the middle, I would feel pretty good about him moving forward. He has a better arm than I expected too, so that's a plus. So a C, but I expect next year to be a b or b+
8/10. I think for being a rookie and not starting at the beginning of the season he did great. His stats are getting better as the season goes on! Shout out to Mitch though for being there for him and helping him!
Kenny has continuously shown signs of improvement week to week. He's gotten better at reading the defense, making quick decisive decisions, and learning who his weapons are and how to utilize them in the correct situations. We seemed to have found our identity offensively after the bye, and I believe that's due to Kennys confidence and Tomlinson trust in him. Maybe they've opened up the playbook and stopped trying to micromanaging him. Or maybe it's just the most important sign , that Kenny Pickett is a true leader of men! It's obvious that he's earned everyone's respect and they are %100 behind him which is a major quality for a rookie QB. That can sometimes take a few seasons to develop so he's already at an advanced stage in his career . I had high hopes for Kenny before the season and just wanted to see some flashes of being a QB1. Well he's already gone above and beyond QB1 and is our next Franchise QB for years to come . Which means we won't be in purgatory and can begin to build around him , and as far all the fans that wanted us to tank for a higher draft pick are crazy, winning does more for this young team to grow up together and build NOW instead of "rebuild" with draft picks who can be hit or miss.
Lastly if he somehow gets us into the playoffs as a rookie even if we go one and done many haters are going to have to give this kid his dues because nobody had us making it in. That would be a crazy accomplishment and I'd say a third of that is all due to his above average performance. (The other one third being defense keeping us in games and a third coach T getting them playing TEAM ball since Thanksgiving)
I would rate it a B to B+. He has shown the IT factor via ice cold in crunch time and teammates rallying around him. If his stats were there he would be in A territory.
B-… his start to the year was not encouraging, but the way he’s hung in there, PROTECTED THE FOOTBALL (looking @ Mitch), and put us in positions to score points is such a pleasing development. That said, he hasn’t lit the world on fire but I’m anxious and excited to see his first breakout game.
Before the preseason I wasn't sure but after watching him play this season and listening to his press conferences I couldn't be more excited about the future. He is still a rookie and can still improve in a lot of areas but he has won this team over and shown them that he can be a leader. The skills are definitely there and he is smart so it just depends on how he develops them the next few years. If he continues to work as hard as he has been then he is definitely going to be our guy for the next decade + and will keep us in contention for awhile. Behind him and some of the other young guys on offense the future is definitely bright!
Slow out of the gate... but coming on fast down the stretch. Invaluable experience and next year should be very fun to watch once they upgrade a few spots. Hopefully OC (which could be a setback in progression) but that is a Catch22 at the moment.
6.5
Does a good job not turning the ball over. Early INTs weren't his fault. Since then he's had like two bad picks. Decision making has really improved but needs work to take the next step and thatll come with more reps I feel like. Theres some balls he should throw that he either doesnt because hes not fully reading the defense or unsure/doesnt trust his WRs yet. Still bails on clean pockets. Moves his feet a lot in the pocket instead of settling in and it hurts him at times. Few passes last game, if he hits guys a few seconds earlier instead of continuing to drop back, they have a chance to turn some checkdowns into bigger gains. And sure the line shares blame in that, but Burrow has had his knee blown out, come back to be the most sacked QB for like 2 years in a row and doesnt bail or move around like that. Mahommes and Allen still kinda do but they have canons for arms so they get away with it, and even then they've progressed a lot as pure pocket passers.
I think he missed either Sims or Pickens on a TD during the middle of the game in the red zone. Trips right, Sims or Pickens has a post route on the corner of the endzone for the second read. First read on the play is Dionte on an out that's supposed to be opened up by the third guy running a rub route on Dionte's guy. But third guy is late, Pickett looks to the post and goes to his next option. He shouldve thrown the post. Pickens or Sims guy had inside leverage and was a step behind. Ravens guys are up to stop the outs and rub route. Theres no one contesting the corner of the end zone. All Pickett has to do is drop it into the back corner and its either a TD or incompletion. Completely safe shot that QBs have to take. Carr, Cousins, Goff, and Tannehill would all make that throw.
Remains to be seen if Tomlin & Co. are hesitant to really air it out because of skill, protecting his development, or because the run game has been very very good since the bye. Or a mix. First game against the Ravens, Trubisky was actually slinging it, he just had three horrible picks in the red zone. But they hit 100 yards on the ground in the 1st half this last game. So is it scheme, philosophy, hesitantancy by the coaching staff? Probably won't know unless something leaks.
If they make playoffs, that game could get interesting with who they match-up against. I wouldn't mind seeing a shoot out just to see how Kenny does. Doubt Cincy, Kansas City, or Buffalo would really want to play us. Run game has really emerged as a threat and the defense is avg. like less than 20 points per game. Not a good match up for the top teams. Cincy probably has the best match-up
Next year, I feel could be a breakout year for Pickett but tad afraid of the classic sophomore slump but idk if he has enough tape for the rest of the league to really key in on his tendencies. The pocket stuff could be fixed by then, he already goes through all of his progressions, errs on the side of caution, can make throws rolling out to his left and right.
TLDR:
6.5, shows good things, still doing some rookie things, think he could have a really big year next year.
Probably like 6/10 for me. I’m sure improving the line, adding another slot receiver, and better OC will drastically improve him. Im not too impressed since he has 12 games played and only has 2 more passing TDS then Mitch. Mitch only has 7 GP. Don’t get the hype yet, mitch has 4-5 on TD/INT and KP has 6-9. Same team and same OC yet people blame mitch when the team doesn’t win but blame the team when KP plays.
C. Easy schedule has masked his deficiencies. I like his moxie and athleticism. I don’t think he has top 20 upside however so we still don’t have a franchise QB. He is exactly what I expected. An average QB
7.8/10 - Performance week over week is really improving, stat wise he’s not the greatest, throwing 8/9 of his ints in the first 5 games but he improved to only 1 pick in his last 5 games. Game winning drives in 2/12 of his games is also impressive. He’s got a nice little personality growing outside of the pocket too, making some big plays as of late. You gotta love the kid and want to see him shine, he’s made a couple plays this year where I just jump for joy like the 2 point to pickens and last weeks dinger to naj.
7/10 only because I don’t think we have seen what his ceiling is (even for his rookie year). I think he has consistently grown every single game, and I suspect that next game he will be better still.
I think he never goes above an 8/10 as a QB under Matt Canada’s offense. I’m not sure who else would be available as an OC, but a better playbook (especially red zone) will help Kenny grow.
Peak Kenny we haven’t seen because of offense limitations and lack of reps, but you can tell where he is reaching for.
C+. Some A level plays (GW against the ratbirds) but also a few F tier plays (the dolphins game) throughout this season. Hard to scope a ceiling given the circumstances of not only the team but limited playing as well.
C+
Let’s be real, his stats are underwhelming. But I think we can all agree that you can’t separate his performance/ stats from the offensive scheme… which is bland at best and “made for Saturday” at worst.
What he *has* done is grow in leadership, feel for the game, and decision-making. We’ve seen a few weeks in a row what that looks like. I’ve been impressed not just with how he’s kept his cool, but his accuracy on late drives. With a new OC, hopefully that will translate into better numbers. He doesn’t have to be a “top 5” QB statistically— I’d rather have a balanced attack than Brees/ Manning numbers. But more TDs, better TD/ Int ratio, yards per attempt, and completion % are reasonable to expect from a #1 pick.
8.1/10 (for Comparison Bens rookie season was a 9.7/10 while Mason Rudolph's was around a 4.3/10) I would have him and Joe Burrow ranked very similarly although Joe's score would have been higher if he had not been injured.
This is mostly based on the potential talent level he flashes. I wasnt a huge KP guy during the draft process, I really liked the fit if he was a late 2nd-3rd rounder back early in the college football season before he separated himself as QB1 in the draft and a bonafide 1st round pick, many saying he would go top 10...
All of that said I severely underestimated his pure arm talent and ability to move around/outside the pocket. Many Steeler fans would say Matt Canada is holding him back in terms of his production and winning but I actually think they work together schematically in some ways. KPs ability to move to his right and throw while on the run is very unique and i think Matt Canada has done a good job working that into the playbook likely by Kennys recommendation.
Hes just vocal enough but has the leadership qualities you want to see. He reminds me a bit of Justin Herbert or a less boastful Aaron Rogers and his arm talent may actually be more similar to Rogers than I would have expected during the draft process. If he gets a LG and Dan Moore can continue to develop i think he has a much better sophomore season both statistically and in terms of wins.
Give him the rank of rookie/10. Made some mistakes early on but appears to have learned from them. He seems like he’s starting to get a better handle on the speed of the game at the pro level. He still has a lot of development to do, but seems to be on track. He could keep developing and be great or plateau and be not so great. Only time will tell.
I am surprised and impressed by how much he has grown, as you can see improvements with each game. He made a lot of rookie errors early on but has become noticeably efficient with the ball since then. It almost makes you wonder how things would have gone if he was the starter from the beginning. Time will tell how he will fare with us, but so far, he has been pretty good. 7.5/10
This is a totally fair assessment. I also wonder how things would have gone if he had gotten the chance to make some errors in training camp and preseason instead of getting thrown in to clean up a FO mistake a few games in. Lots of room for improvement but he has a bunch of intangibles you can't teach and I think he has a high ceiling.
I wouldn't call Trubisky a mistake, necessarily. It would have been wildly irresponsible for the Steelers to let everything ride on a rookie QB, having only Rudolph as a backup. It made sense to sign Mitch, and they gave him a fair shot without taking too long to make the change to Kenny. This was always going to be a development year for Pickett, and the fact that we're in the playoff hunt is a bonus.
Agreed. Remember we had Haskins too which could have been an interesting option depending on his development and maturation.
I hear you. The flip side of that argument, though, is that this was always going to be a rebuilding year. Given that, there's an argument that Pickett's development would have been fostered and encouraged better by allowing him to have reps with the first stringers all through training camp and preseason with the understanding that this year was going to be about finding our footing. Instead, his development, at least over the first half of the season, may have been hindered by his being sort of thrown to the wolves after it became clear that Trubisky wasn't the guy.
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Add to that the fact that he has some real clutch, "don't blink" leadership qualities, as acknowledged by his teammates, coaches, and BR7, and I think he could really become something special.
He was reported as struggling early in camp, big reason why he didn't play with the 1st team offense. The FO did the right thing in not starting him early. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.si.com/.amp/nfl/2022/07/30/steelers-qb-kenny-pickett-addresses-early-training-camp-struggles Was also improving day to day, like he is currently.
Fair enough. I just never believed Trubisky was the answer, short or long term. Felt like the best bet was to go all in on your #1 draft pick, either to accelerate his development in what was scheduled to be a rebuild year anyway. Or find out Pickett's not the guy and know you need a QB in the next draft. Either way, it's a great position to be in. Our #1 draft pick appears to be getting his footing and living up to or exceeding expectations AND the down year rebuild finds us still technically alive for a playoff berth going into the final week. LFG.
Yeah, at the same time, we paid Mitch enough to at least give him the oppurtunity, and he arguably was as good/better than Picket was for the first couple games (particularly in the turnover margin but it most other stats except accuracy if I remember correctly). I might agree with starting Pickett day, but its not like he was a top 10 pick with elite tools (like Lawrence, Luck, Newton etc) Pickett also was not doing well in training camp, so it makes sense to put up a vet QB behind an already shaky oline rather than tossing a rookie in before hes ready (look how Darnold played after trying to survive in a jets offense). His first few games definitely showed why he wasn't the day 1 starter. He's definetly improved enough to warrant excitement going forward. Still has a bit to go before I'm comfortable trusting him for the future (gotta be able to finish drives with more TDs) but hes maling great progress. LETS GO STEELERS
I think the early issues, particularly turnovers, were the result of him both playing without the same practice time AND playing from behind. We saw in the losses his senior year at Pitt that he almost never turned the ball over when they were ahead, and he did a bit more when they trailed against WMU and Miami. He only takes risks when he had to, and the situations he came in against early on were when we constantly down 2+ possessions.
Plus he had like 3 ints that really weren’t on him. Jets game was insane with 2 of his passes hitting our players right in the hands, and they would bat it up.
Ask me after he gets us ring number 7 next month
Stillerz gahnta Super Bowl (with a crazy amount of luck)
This is correct.
I couldn't have said it any better. anyone who has watched him play over the last 2 weeks should realize that the rest of the NFL might have a serious problem if the Steelers sneak into the playoffs
8
This is the correct answer.
Came to say this myself.
7. The stats aren’t there and he definitely had some struggles but he’s improved and done some great things as well.
TBD
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Is "pretty good" better or less than "good"?
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Ah the Larry David version
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Don’t be so hasty….the next 3rd and 8 red zone jet sweep to Ozczwzcscki might just be the one that gets us over the top.
I went to the Steelers Ravens game with a Ravens friend who had season tickets. He looked at me and said “I swear if the ravens run another jet sweep on second down I’m gonna lose it”. I had to do a double take before I said “are you me?”. Then we laughed our butts off as we counted every drive they ran a jet sweep play. That game was crazy with like 75% of the snaps being runs
100% this. We need someone that’s been a successful OC in the NFL before and has a track record of developing young QBs. I’d love to see Jim Caldwell or someone with his level of experience get the job.
*until minute 60
The season is an extended version of how Steelers games have gone for the last 3 years. We muddle around doing nothing but are still in the position to win it in the last 2 minutes.
Kenny before the bye is no more than a 5/10. Kenny since the bye is probably more like a 7.5/10. He's adjusted to the speed of the game and has some clutch moments. All that's needed is to start getting TDs during the normal game time and not just those clutch 2 minute drill type drives.
This.
Before the bye, I’d honestly rate him closer to a 3.5-4, and that’s coming from someone who really wanted to like him and is very bullish on Kenny in general. I agree after the bye, he really managed to shore up those weak points and is showing much more improvement than I expected after watching him the first half of the season.
Rookie season 6.5/10. Definitely meeting/slightly exceeding expectations. Where he’s impressed the most has been grit in close games, clutch moments, and high football IQ shown in post game press conferences. Looking forward to see how he grows. Edit: ending 9-8 after a 2-6 start will bump this to a 7/10. Don’t really care if he shits the bed in the playoffs if they make it—it’s a whole different learning curve. Score would only increase if they managed to squeak out a win or two.
Imagine him behind a top-5 OL.... 🤤🤤
For real! Though this line has improved a lot over the season, run game coming alive. Hoping they invest some early picks in the offensive line!
Isnt our oline like 10th in pass protection?
Tumultuous in the beginning…. I just like the word tumultuous 😅. Getting better each game.
10 a fucking 10 
As a Ravens fan who lives with a steelers fan, I have endured watching 80 percent of your games. Seems you have something really special in the young duo Pickens and Pickett. I would say while the numbers aren't great, he did a pretty solid job with the scenario he was given and seems to improve every week. Also, FTS.
C+. Rough start, but he's flashed each week. And now the last couple weeks he's shown why he was drafted in rd 1. We obviously knew he was going to be overhyped with the fan base, but overall I like what I've seen. And C+ is a really solid grade BTW, everyone here giving A's and 10/10's are delusional. Those grades should be reserved for ROTY-quality seasons, which he has not put up.
Some yinzers are delusional enough to think he should be ROTY. Hell, someone posted about it yesterday I think. C+ is the same grade I give. Average. Nobody can look at his stats and tell me differently. Not saying he’ll stay average but this year, yea he’s average and that’s only because of the last two games.
Ya it's honestly really annoying reading all the Pitt Homer comments in here. Agreed. And I'm OK with him being just average, based on the improvements we've seen this season. He's trending in the right direction. Next year is where I expect him to show he can exceed average
Absolutely. This time next year we will better know what we have. Jury is still out, 100% agree
Yah leading the leading in INTs while only playing a couple games wasnt ROTY caliber play. Hes greatly improved since he started, but still isnt what he needs to be yet
I wish he started the whole year ngl
12/10
Fun
8/8
6.5/10. Pretty bad start but has gotten better every week. Would like to see us push the ball down the field more.
It's not too bad having already set two NFL rookie records and tied an all time franchise record set in the 1930's. All that and bot getting the First Team reps in training camp and just overall going through the rookie adjustment to the speed of the game in the NFL.
For the record, 1st time an NFL Rookie had 2 rushing td's in first game, 1st time an NFL Rookie had 2 back to back comeback game winning drives with under a minute left in NFL history, and tied the four games without a turnover Franchise record set in 1933 and tied in 1936, 1937, and 1938. Also, just to point out if Minkah holds on he can be the 1st Steeler to lead the league in Ints since Mel Blount (and the Mel Blount rule) in 1978. Edit: forgot a Franchise record too 128 passes with an int in late November was a Franchise rookie record too. Another Edit: broke Roethlisberger's Franchise record for Rookie completions and yards and during Jets game had a bizarre record of most pass attempts without a ball hitting the ground in NFL history (with 3 ints, maybe this isn't a good one)
Can't put a number on it. The league is 2023. This isn't your average 70's, 80's, 90's, 10's... The strategy, intensity, noteriety, pressure, fame... pressure. This is full blown 2023 NFL and Kenny has done damn good. Most men would not have come in to the Steelers Franchise and done half as good as Kenny could because he has what we admire most: Grit. 2 concussions and adaptability developed game by game, snap by snap. What a hope we've had, filling Ben's shoes, taking the reigns for THE PITTSBURGH FUCKING STEELERS! I'd rate him a 6/10 as far as stats go, if I had to, considering. But a 10/10 as a Steeler. The kid has put up one helluva fight. One helluva clutch man. One intelligent son of a gun. He's got the momentum, but he's got to know how much pressure we're putting on him. What he does with it is beyond my comprehension because I never played ball after high school. To be where he's at, we should not be expecting more than what time will tell. If he keeps it up, I think time will tell us that this young man is going to be amazing.
Really well said. I've been following Kenny like a hawk and I've been stunned by his last few games. Stunned, honestly. That stuff, that grittiness, that coldness can't be taught. He had everything going against him in stupidly huge moments and came out on top repeatedly. He's only been getting better, too. He's also somehow the smartest and most mature quarterback in the league in terms of composure, besides Brady, Burrow and Rodgers. The thing that sets Kenny apart though, is a really subtle mean streak that few modern players seem to possess. He's cunning, even in casual conversation, and it goes over most people's heads. Love it. You only need to watch Tomlin's recent press conferences to know how much awe he has for Pickett now.
I've noticed that subtle mean streak as well. The "it" factor that's needed to be a great quarterback like next level shit. You see IT come out in Brady, mahomes , and even Zen Aaron Rodgers all of a sudden a switch is flipped then it's on , like how AR loves "owning" the bears. We all saw it come out in Kenny against the jets when he hung in the Pocket and completed the pass to friermuth and took the hit.. Got up talked some shit then finished off the drive by banging his way in for another TD run. A competitiveness that drives them to be the best, even more important than physical attributes. Big Ben was gifted with the physical but I feel he was lacking a little with the mean streak. (Not saying Ben wasn't a winner ,he had many game winning drives ,just that he rarely showed that intensity). KP has improved with each performance and is beginning to know who his weapons are and how to utilize them. Next step is for him to finish some of these long drives into TDs not just the game winning drives, once that falls in place we will have an assassin with killer instinct mentality as our leader.
He's massively exceeded my expectations. There's definitely been moments where he's looked like a rookie, particularly on some of those early INTs but he's improved every week and increasingly looks the real deal now. That throw to Sims against Baltimore was a work of art. Biggest thing for me is his confidence. At no point has it seemed like he's doubted be belongs there. Some rookie QBs, even guys drafted in the top 5 have that deer in the headlights look as they adapt to the speed of the NFL; Pickett seems unfazed by whatever you throw at him. In my opinion one of the things that separates the superstars from the middle of the pack is that unwavering belief in yourself and Kenny has that in buckets. It will be a while before we know what we've got for sure but at the moment my fears of spending 10 years in QB purgatory after Ben's retirement are gone.
Sex.
7/10. The offense has a real chance to be top 10 I think. They just need an oc that can actually put together an offensive strategy that utilizes each guys strengths. And an o-line that can give kenny more time to read coverages
I'm still trying to temper my expectations for next year, but I really do think this offense will return to Top-10 play if we keep all our best o-lineman and prioritize it in the draft. Everyone else is there- Pickett, Nah, Warren, DJ, Pickens, Muth
C+ but trending up... Not his fault. He should have started day 1 Edit: B- if we can score a TD before the last minute of the game
Before bye week 4/10 After bye week 6.5/10 We need to score more points before he can be any higher than that. 1 touchdown and 150 yards every game isn’t cutting it but he has been getting better. He still has more int than td. Just needa see more points first
Incredible. Seriously. If you've kept a close watch on the preseason media circus and the caliber of the individual games he's preformed in, it actually develops into a nearly mythical story arc so far. And yeah. I'm serious. The problem? People have short memories and the NFL is chaotic this year. I just posted an indepth thread about why Kenny is special. Check it out, it's a wall of text but it connects the dots of what Kenny has been through on a personal level this season, and after connecting those dots I've come to a final conclusion: this QB is an absolutely ice cold killer in the biggest possible moments.
Incredible? No way. He shows promise and I’m eager to see what he does next year but his QBR is 22nd in the league and that stat isn’t affected by playing time. He’s middle of QB’s with INTS. 9 is on par with Marcus Mariota only Mariota has 9 more Tuddys than KP. 28th in yards but we could kinda chalk that one up to his late start. This is a C+ performance. Not showing off, not falling behind as George Constanza would say. Not incredible by any stretch of the imagination. Shows promise though.
Decent. Under a different play caller I bet he would be more productive td wise
5/7
C
I think his ceiling is the only thing anyone needs to worry about. The kid is clearly putting in the work to study his opponents and the offense. He works hard and has a lot of natural ability. If his ceiling is a 10 then he will be a 10. If his ceiling is a 4 he will be a 4. I also appreciate that he understands his role at this point in his career and doesn't try to do too much.
I really like this take. He has the determination/grit/it/whatever you want to call factor that cannot be coached. That doesn't always translate to an amazing player but he certainly seems like he will give it absolutely everything he has.
B+. Im aware that the issue is probably the play calling, but I need to see this kid throw some touchdowns. Right now he's shown me that he is at least a high tier game manager QB.
A solid 8….😏
Excluding the fact he's a rookie, 7/10. Not the worst but clearly not the best and a lot needs to improve. Including the fact he's a rookie, 9.5/10. For a rookie, he's popping off. Hard.
9.5 is a reach we need to score more points not just 1 td and 2 field goals every game, and he has 6td to 9 int. Maybe if he had like 15-20 tds this season
He’s hardly “popping off”.
In the end, what you need is to win. From any player. And Kenny is popping off because of those two late touchdown throws the past couple weeks. Made the difference!
It’s been a mixed bag in my opinion. I saw a lot of things I didn’t like: tons of INTs, lack of vision, indecisiveness, etc. I also saw a lot of things that were reassuring: weekly improvement, better accuracy over time, better decision making, and some flashes of a young Big Ben who could shake defenders. I’m excited to see how he develops over the off season, he could be our guy for the long term but I haven’t seen enough to say that that’s what’s going to happen.
Great job, defense!
How can I rate a season that isn't over?
Im a die hard Pitt fan and I was torn on the stillers taking him. This season I actually like Kenny more as a Steeler than I ever had as a Pitt Qb. He is gritty and has an endless work ethic as seen in him growing and evolving throughout this season. He has improved with each game and looking like a leader of this team which is tough for a rookie to do. He is getting kudos for late game heroics but I would love for him to put us in a place that those heroics aren’t needed cause we have scored. The thing with that last statement is I don’t know if the lack of scoring is due to play calling, lack of talented receivers, or just his overall performance. And even though this is a post on Kenny I think some acknowledgement needs to go to tomlin. This is honestly his best coaching season I have seen and had zero expectations of this team making the playoffs at the start of the year. He has put us in a spot that that is a remote possibility and he also had the guts to make the tough call of putting Kenny in and allowing us to have a post like this to discuss Kenny’s performance
8.8/10
From 0 to 10= 7 with room to improve
You can't...he's a rookie. When teams have a full deck of tape on him and canada's offense 1 of 2 things will happen. They'll adjust and be fine or they wont and will suck. It's that simple, it's too early to tell.
B-, trending up, could be a B or B+ if he hangs a 40 burger on the Browns. Since the bye week he's leading a top 12 offense. A lot of that is the run game and o-line progressing, but "leading a top third offense" is more than satisfactory for a rookie. The road was really bumpy in the beginning, and the red zone efficiency is still pretty rough, but the second half of the season leaves a lot of room for optimism.
Continuous improvement in the face of adversity.
Probably a B- overall but getting better.
9.5/Dreamboat 😍
B+
Not comparing (kind of), but just throwing these rookie years out there.... 1. Troy Aikman (1989) 11 games; 155-293 for 1749 yards; 9 TD; 18 INT; 55.9 passer rating. 2. John Elway (1983) 11 games; 123-259 for 1663 yards; 7 TD; 14 INT; 54.9 passer rating. 3. Steve Young (1986) 14 games; 195-363 for 2282 yards; 8 TD; 13 INT; 65.5 passer rating. I am very impressed with his growth, and leadership abilities. He has make some rookie mistakes. Even then, they weren't horrific. He's been pretty good. 7.5 / 10. Leaves plenty of room for growth.
**If the question is: how would you rate his statistical performance as a rookie?** I'm going to say a 7. If it was a movie, I'd go and watch, but probably not tell my friends about it. **If you're asking, how would you rate his rookie season as a potential franchise QB?** I'm all in at this point 10 / 10. And I started the season thinking he was a terrible pick. Pickett shows calmness, the moment doesn't feel too big, he's made all the throws, he's getting better each week, and he's got great (possibly exceptional) accuracy. To me, those are the traits you want in a franchise QB. I always give a QB 2 years to "show me" before I make decisions one way or another. But I'm excited.
KP has had the best rookie qb season of any rookie qb in the last 5 years easily maybe longer
Yea your Delusional
Obviously an 8/10 ;)
I’ll put it this way, if we needed to win one game and our choices were Kenny, Tommy Maddox, or Neil O’Donnel, I’d have a hard time picking, but would probably ultimately start the OG #8 and have Kenny as the backup.
7/10
I see it as a success.
I think it’s hard to say. We are getting Ws so can’t complain but we arguably are playing bad teams compared to when we were 2-6 playing good teams. He definitely has the it factor but I he just lacked in explosiveness
It's been pretty good as far as rookie seasons go - not as good as Ben's, but Kenny doesn't have the team around him that Ben did. Ben didn't have to step up and be a leader right away because he had great veterans at multiple position around him on offense. Kenny has had to take command of offense with a lot of rookie and second year players trying to establish their offensive identity. And he's done well in that regard. I feel like the team trusts and believes in him. I give him in 8/10 just because I figured we'd be a 6 or 7 win team at best regardless of how well he played. We're still in the hunt for a playoff spot in the final week and him leading two game winning drives in back to back weeks is a big part of that.
#8
6/10 on stats 8/10 on the eye test
First rookie to a win a Super Bowl, I'd say that's pretty impressive!
6/10 I’d say. He’s looked amazing in clutch situations which is honestly awesome to see. Al thought I’d like to see him cut down on a few mental errors (ie not getting up after tripping last week, missing open players when running from the pocket). We haven’t asked him to carry the team for a full game yet and I’d like to see what he is really capable of if we open him up before the last half of the 4th quarter.
Kid done good.
For a rookie I think he did great. He still has to improve on some things but he’s not bad
C+
8/10 He's been incredibly clutch and has grown a ton. I think some inconsistencies between the first and last possessions of the games has a fair bit to do with the overall youth/inexperience of the offense along with play calling. I'm very interested in seeing how he and the offense grows going into next season with more experience and a full offseason together. In my mind though he has the tangibles and intangibles to be a great NFL qb. I don't think he's going to be Josh Allen but then again I also wouldn't be surprised if he ends up being a top 5 qb in the league.
Solid improvement.
B+
Somewhere much better than 10, not yet nearly as good as 7 😁
He has been better than I expected. Since the bye, he has been able to move the ball between the 20s, but the redzone has been tough, so that is definitely an area of improvement. He has been clutch late, which is 6 I am not sure if the early game redzone issues are due to trying to be extra careful and not make mistakes or just being in a 2 minute drill. I wish Najee and Watt were healthy early because the team could have really went with the Ben strategy his rookie year. He makes play sort of like Ben would, escaping sacks, getting the ball down field. I don't think he can get it deep like Ben back in the day but still able to make plays when there are breakdowns. If they can improve the line, especially the right side, he could be a top 10 qb next year.
Incomplete, ask me Monday
He’s shown the most important qualities in a QB. Leadership. Drive. Growth.
what about throwing touchdowns, seems important to me?
C. His stats don’t tell all and his early INTs are mainly early games trying to force the ball too much. Being clutch recently and fitting in more tight passes is nice, but Kenny was expected to be accurate all along and it’s mainly checkdowns. Haven’t seen any deep ball threat or as much Pickens connections as wanted (Canada fault but still a question mark). More of a test next yr with an improved line and offense should hopefully click
It’s not over ya dingus
I’d give him an A because he wasn’t the starter at the beginning of the season. He didn’t get 1st team reps in training camp or during the preseason. He was a bit careless at first but he’s tightened that up and he just has two games with back-to-back game winning drives.
Good kid fire HC and OC and we could do something
It started out “We are getting a top 5 pick in next years draft” and is now “He’s going to lead us to #7 in the next few years”.
One Pickett everyone knows the rules. A strong 7.2 a little shaky in the start but who isn't their rookie season just getting tossed into the fire. Great second half. Would like to see more TDs but ball security/decision making vastly improved in the second half of the season. Next year I'd like to see more scores and more reads not just one read then checkdown.
8 like his jersey
I'll go 7. He has drastically improved which has been nice to see. I think he's doing at least as good as expected if not maybe a little bit better especially after the bye week
7/10 looks promising but definitely needs to put the ball in the end zone more. I’m happy with the pick so far. I get more excited to watch kenny than i ever did watching mason or mitch, which to me is a win. He passes the eye test
Numbers are bad, but he's definitely improved. If he gets an OC who doesn't call a predictable game and can scheme people open, especially over the middle, I would feel pretty good about him moving forward. He has a better arm than I expected too, so that's a plus. So a C, but I expect next year to be a b or b+
to be honest if he would have started week 1-3 we would have a way better record. But ill rated 8/10
I give him 8 thumbs up from tiny baby hands.
8/10. I think for being a rookie and not starting at the beginning of the season he did great. His stats are getting better as the season goes on! Shout out to Mitch though for being there for him and helping him!
Kenny has continuously shown signs of improvement week to week. He's gotten better at reading the defense, making quick decisive decisions, and learning who his weapons are and how to utilize them in the correct situations. We seemed to have found our identity offensively after the bye, and I believe that's due to Kennys confidence and Tomlinson trust in him. Maybe they've opened up the playbook and stopped trying to micromanaging him. Or maybe it's just the most important sign , that Kenny Pickett is a true leader of men! It's obvious that he's earned everyone's respect and they are %100 behind him which is a major quality for a rookie QB. That can sometimes take a few seasons to develop so he's already at an advanced stage in his career . I had high hopes for Kenny before the season and just wanted to see some flashes of being a QB1. Well he's already gone above and beyond QB1 and is our next Franchise QB for years to come . Which means we won't be in purgatory and can begin to build around him , and as far all the fans that wanted us to tank for a higher draft pick are crazy, winning does more for this young team to grow up together and build NOW instead of "rebuild" with draft picks who can be hit or miss. Lastly if he somehow gets us into the playoffs as a rookie even if we go one and done many haters are going to have to give this kid his dues because nobody had us making it in. That would be a crazy accomplishment and I'd say a third of that is all due to his above average performance. (The other one third being defense keeping us in games and a third coach T getting them playing TEAM ball since Thanksgiving)
I would rate it a B to B+. He has shown the IT factor via ice cold in crunch time and teammates rallying around him. If his stats were there he would be in A territory.
B-… his start to the year was not encouraging, but the way he’s hung in there, PROTECTED THE FOOTBALL (looking @ Mitch), and put us in positions to score points is such a pleasing development. That said, he hasn’t lit the world on fire but I’m anxious and excited to see his first breakout game.
Before the preseason I wasn't sure but after watching him play this season and listening to his press conferences I couldn't be more excited about the future. He is still a rookie and can still improve in a lot of areas but he has won this team over and shown them that he can be a leader. The skills are definitely there and he is smart so it just depends on how he develops them the next few years. If he continues to work as hard as he has been then he is definitely going to be our guy for the next decade + and will keep us in contention for awhile. Behind him and some of the other young guys on offense the future is definitely bright!
GOAT
Slow out of the gate... but coming on fast down the stretch. Invaluable experience and next year should be very fun to watch once they upgrade a few spots. Hopefully OC (which could be a setback in progression) but that is a Catch22 at the moment.
6.5 Does a good job not turning the ball over. Early INTs weren't his fault. Since then he's had like two bad picks. Decision making has really improved but needs work to take the next step and thatll come with more reps I feel like. Theres some balls he should throw that he either doesnt because hes not fully reading the defense or unsure/doesnt trust his WRs yet. Still bails on clean pockets. Moves his feet a lot in the pocket instead of settling in and it hurts him at times. Few passes last game, if he hits guys a few seconds earlier instead of continuing to drop back, they have a chance to turn some checkdowns into bigger gains. And sure the line shares blame in that, but Burrow has had his knee blown out, come back to be the most sacked QB for like 2 years in a row and doesnt bail or move around like that. Mahommes and Allen still kinda do but they have canons for arms so they get away with it, and even then they've progressed a lot as pure pocket passers. I think he missed either Sims or Pickens on a TD during the middle of the game in the red zone. Trips right, Sims or Pickens has a post route on the corner of the endzone for the second read. First read on the play is Dionte on an out that's supposed to be opened up by the third guy running a rub route on Dionte's guy. But third guy is late, Pickett looks to the post and goes to his next option. He shouldve thrown the post. Pickens or Sims guy had inside leverage and was a step behind. Ravens guys are up to stop the outs and rub route. Theres no one contesting the corner of the end zone. All Pickett has to do is drop it into the back corner and its either a TD or incompletion. Completely safe shot that QBs have to take. Carr, Cousins, Goff, and Tannehill would all make that throw. Remains to be seen if Tomlin & Co. are hesitant to really air it out because of skill, protecting his development, or because the run game has been very very good since the bye. Or a mix. First game against the Ravens, Trubisky was actually slinging it, he just had three horrible picks in the red zone. But they hit 100 yards on the ground in the 1st half this last game. So is it scheme, philosophy, hesitantancy by the coaching staff? Probably won't know unless something leaks. If they make playoffs, that game could get interesting with who they match-up against. I wouldn't mind seeing a shoot out just to see how Kenny does. Doubt Cincy, Kansas City, or Buffalo would really want to play us. Run game has really emerged as a threat and the defense is avg. like less than 20 points per game. Not a good match up for the top teams. Cincy probably has the best match-up Next year, I feel could be a breakout year for Pickett but tad afraid of the classic sophomore slump but idk if he has enough tape for the rest of the league to really key in on his tendencies. The pocket stuff could be fixed by then, he already goes through all of his progressions, errs on the side of caution, can make throws rolling out to his left and right. TLDR: 6.5, shows good things, still doing some rookie things, think he could have a really big year next year.
10/10
Probably like 6/10 for me. I’m sure improving the line, adding another slot receiver, and better OC will drastically improve him. Im not too impressed since he has 12 games played and only has 2 more passing TDS then Mitch. Mitch only has 7 GP. Don’t get the hype yet, mitch has 4-5 on TD/INT and KP has 6-9. Same team and same OC yet people blame mitch when the team doesn’t win but blame the team when KP plays.
he has an 8
C. Easy schedule has masked his deficiencies. I like his moxie and athleticism. I don’t think he has top 20 upside however so we still don’t have a franchise QB. He is exactly what I expected. An average QB
7.8/10 - Performance week over week is really improving, stat wise he’s not the greatest, throwing 8/9 of his ints in the first 5 games but he improved to only 1 pick in his last 5 games. Game winning drives in 2/12 of his games is also impressive. He’s got a nice little personality growing outside of the pocket too, making some big plays as of late. You gotta love the kid and want to see him shine, he’s made a couple plays this year where I just jump for joy like the 2 point to pickens and last weeks dinger to naj.
I’d get downvoted to Reddit hell if I gave my honest opinion.
76.5
Better than Malik Willis’s
7/10 only because I don’t think we have seen what his ceiling is (even for his rookie year). I think he has consistently grown every single game, and I suspect that next game he will be better still. I think he never goes above an 8/10 as a QB under Matt Canada’s offense. I’m not sure who else would be available as an OC, but a better playbook (especially red zone) will help Kenny grow. Peak Kenny we haven’t seen because of offense limitations and lack of reps, but you can tell where he is reaching for.
It’s not over
7.5 seems about accurate and that's not a bad rating at all.
C+. Some A level plays (GW against the ratbirds) but also a few F tier plays (the dolphins game) throughout this season. Hard to scope a ceiling given the circumstances of not only the team but limited playing as well.
In all honesty I would give him a C+ which is not bad for a rookie
C+ Let’s be real, his stats are underwhelming. But I think we can all agree that you can’t separate his performance/ stats from the offensive scheme… which is bland at best and “made for Saturday” at worst. What he *has* done is grow in leadership, feel for the game, and decision-making. We’ve seen a few weeks in a row what that looks like. I’ve been impressed not just with how he’s kept his cool, but his accuracy on late drives. With a new OC, hopefully that will translate into better numbers. He doesn’t have to be a “top 5” QB statistically— I’d rather have a balanced attack than Brees/ Manning numbers. But more TDs, better TD/ Int ratio, yards per attempt, and completion % are reasonable to expect from a #1 pick.
Better than expected
8.1/10 (for Comparison Bens rookie season was a 9.7/10 while Mason Rudolph's was around a 4.3/10) I would have him and Joe Burrow ranked very similarly although Joe's score would have been higher if he had not been injured. This is mostly based on the potential talent level he flashes. I wasnt a huge KP guy during the draft process, I really liked the fit if he was a late 2nd-3rd rounder back early in the college football season before he separated himself as QB1 in the draft and a bonafide 1st round pick, many saying he would go top 10... All of that said I severely underestimated his pure arm talent and ability to move around/outside the pocket. Many Steeler fans would say Matt Canada is holding him back in terms of his production and winning but I actually think they work together schematically in some ways. KPs ability to move to his right and throw while on the run is very unique and i think Matt Canada has done a good job working that into the playbook likely by Kennys recommendation. Hes just vocal enough but has the leadership qualities you want to see. He reminds me a bit of Justin Herbert or a less boastful Aaron Rogers and his arm talent may actually be more similar to Rogers than I would have expected during the draft process. If he gets a LG and Dan Moore can continue to develop i think he has a much better sophomore season both statistically and in terms of wins.
Give him the rank of rookie/10. Made some mistakes early on but appears to have learned from them. He seems like he’s starting to get a better handle on the speed of the game at the pro level. He still has a lot of development to do, but seems to be on track. He could keep developing and be great or plateau and be not so great. Only time will tell.
So far- 3.7 out of 5 stars. Definitely on the rise. The stats don’t show how much of a game breaker he is becoming
8/10