PFF Predicts Kenny Pickett Wins Steelers Starting Job

Pitt football's latest first-round pick is expected to earn the starting job right away.

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers lost long-time starting quarterback Ben Rothlisberger to retirement but didn't have to go very far in search of his replacement. They selected former Pittsburgh Panthers' Kenny Pickett with the 21st pick in last month's NFL Draft and at least one national football writer thinks that the Steelers will anoint him the starter immediately. 

Ben Lindsey from Pro Football Focus released his predictions for every team's starting lineups on both sides of the ball and pegged the former Panther, Pickett as the heir apparent to Rothlisberger. Pickett is one of just two rookies among Lindsay's projected starters for the Steelers, with second-round receiver George Pickens being the other. 

Lindsey doesn't think that Pickett was automatically the starter as soon as he was drafted. He'll still have to compete with veteran Mitchell Trubisky, who signed a two-year, $14.3 million contract with the Steelers this offseason.

"Whenever there is any question as to who the starting quarterback will be entering a season, it’s hard to go anywhere else for the most interesting training camp battle," Lindsey wrote. "Pittsburgh brought in Mitchell Trubisky on a two-year, $14.3 million deal that didn’t scream 'locked-in starter' at the time and certainly doesn’t now after the Steelers spent their first-round pick on Kenny Pickett." 

But, by Pro Football Focus' own metrics, Trubisky's been one of the worst quarterbacks in football since he was drafted in 2017.

"The only quarterback who earned a lower PFF grade than Trubisky from 2017 to 2020 was Sam Darnold," Lindsey wrote. "Pickett isn’t without his concerns as a prospect, but he has a better chance of providing a real upgrade at quarterback for the Steelers than Trubisky does."

Trubisky, a former first-round pick himself, has already been ousted from a starting job by another top draft selection. Last year, rookie Justin Fields took over the reins in the middle of the season after recovering from injury. 

Pickett ended his career at Pitt as one of the most productive quarterbacks in school history. He threw for 4,319 yards and was fourth in the country in passing touchdowns. Pickett was named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy after leading the Panthers to an 11-2 regular season and an ACC title. 

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