Inside Steelers QB Kenny Pickett's Defining Game-Winning Drive

The Pittsburgh Steelers' future may have been found in their winning drive over the Ravens.

Death, taxes and Pittsburgh Steelers versus Baltimore Ravens matchups going down to the wire are the three most certain things in life. 

When the NFL decided to flex part two of their season series into primetime, this is exactly the type of finish that they were looking for in order to draw ratings. While nearing the conclusion of the 2022 NFL season, this game in particular felt like the beginning of so much more.

Over the past twenty-plus years, I've often said that what players do in these intense, high stake, Steelers-Ravens matchups often define who they are as players. Think about all of the legendary figures that have suited up on both sides of this rivalry and your mind immediately reflects back on a special game-changing play that took place in one of these games. In his first real taste of what this game is really all about, Kenny Pickett made a lasting impression by marching the Steelers down the field in the waning moments of the contest.

Pickett's no longer a stranger to these types of situations as he's now thrown game-winning touchdown passes in the final two minutes of the last two regular season games to keep the Steelers' slim playoff chances alive. With the Steelers consistently playing in one-score games over the past couple of months, the rookie signal-caller has gotten plenty of exposure in high-pressure affairs. Even taking all of those other moments into consideration, there's no trial run that can get you ready for what he was thrust into at M&T Bank Stadium: Steelers ball at the 20-yard line, four minutes to go and they need a touchdown to win it.

As he's done several times now during his rookie season, Pickett delivered in magnificent fashion. Early in the drive, Pickett rolled out left, keeping his eyes down the field and found his trustworthy tight end Pat Freiermuth working to find the open void in zone coverage. Pickett did an excellent job squaring his shoulders and delivering a catchable ball to pick up a huge chunk of yardage to get the Steelers up to midfield. 

The next throw was absolutely jaw-dropping. With the Ravens clearly playing 2-man, Steven Sims ran a bender route- a seam to essentially split the two safeties. With Pickett in shotgun, he drilled an absolute seed down the pipe just over the outstretched fingertips of Ravens rookie safety Kyle Hamilton and into the arms of Sims who made a clutch grab in a ton of traffic. This 28-yard throw was not just your run-of-the-mill highlight-worthy throw, it was the best throw of Pickett's young career when you factor in the window, ball placement, and game situation.

A couple of plays later, with the game handing in the balance on third and eight, Pickett drove the nail through the coffin. 

Pickett motioned Najee Harris to his left to create a four-strong look in the low red zone area and as he began scanning left, he slid into some pressure from Jason Pierre-Paul before being able to shrug him off and evade him on his way out of the pocket. Harris made an excellent decision in full scramble drill mode as he bolted upfield with Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith fixated on the quarterback exiting the pocket. Pickett was able to regain his balance, square his shoulders and drop a dime over the width of Smith's shoulders, right into the hands of Harris in the end zone for the eventual game-winner.

The rookie certainly wasn't perfect by any means on the night as he entered the final drive with barely over 100 yards passing. The Steelers relied more on their run game which was insanely effective while their defense was lights out in the second half. But Pickett was truly solid on the night and spectacular when the game moved to crunch time late in the fourth quarter. 

We are still in the very beginning stages of evaluating whether or not Kenny Pickett is the next true franchise quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers. One thing that certainly feels settled already: the moment isn't too big for the 24-year-old from Ocean Township, New Jersey. 

There aren't box score stats that can measure the ability or confidence of a trigger man stepping into the huddle, late in the game when the team needs a score in a do-or-die type of moment. There have been more successes than failures in these critical stages but through it all, there's never been a time where he gave off the impression that the lights were simply too bright for him.

We can talk all offseason about the numbers, both positive and negative, but the ability to come through in the clutch holds a lot of weight in terms of figuring out if a guy is the right man for the job. In order to succeed at this high of a level, the guy under center has to command the belief of the other ten guys in the huddle when things get tough. The ability to perform in the clutch is a pre-requisite of any good NFL quarterback, and Pickett's surely building up some goodwill and trust from his teammates after delivering in these moments in back-to-back weeks.

It remains to be seen if the Pittsburgh Steelers will pull off the impossible and make the postseason again this season. They still need a decent amount of help in addition to beating the Cleveland Browns this week at Acrisure Stadium. 

Regardless of what happens over the next several days, Pickett's development over the past couple of weeks alone should be enough to electrify an entire city throughout the offseason. 

With Pickett's arrow pointing up in regards to his development and Pittsburgh winning games in the meantime, there's now light at the end of the tunnel in a season where things looked really bleak during several stretches earlier in the year. There's plenty of work to be done moving forward, but the Steelers first-round pick introduced himself to the rivalry in stunning fashion. 

This night could very well be remembered as the night when Pittsburgh found their next franchise quarterback. 

Find great deals on Steelers tickets from SI Tickets HERE

Make sure you bookmark All Steelers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

Kenny Pickett Keeps Proving Steelers Right

Cam Heyward, Refs Have Different Reasons for Personal Foul

Kenny Pickett's Game-Winning Drive Keeps Steelers Season Alive

Steelers Cross Off Two Major Milestones in Playoff Push

Najee Harris Has Proven Everyone Wrong

Another OC Candidate Becomes Available for Steelers

• Subscribe to the All Steelers YouTube Channel
• Follow All Steelers on Twitter: @si_steelers