Browns QB Kenny Pickett just gave the Steelers bulletin board material with a calculated shot at Pittsburgh brass
The way things ended between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Kenny Pickett was far from pretty. Both parties have their side of the story, of which we have detailed in depth with sourced information on how everything went down. But now, Kenny Pickett is back in the division, with the Cleveland Browns of course, and he's […]
The way things ended between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Kenny Pickett was far from pretty.
Both parties have their side of the story, of which we have detailed in depth with sourced information on how everything went down.
But now, Kenny Pickett is back in the division, with the Cleveland Browns of course, and he's letting the team that drafted him know how he feels…
Kenny Pickett says Eagles showed him how things should be run
"I'm extremely grateful for my time in Philly," Pickett told Cleveland media at OTAs this week. "I think I just, you know, [I was] shown how it's supposed to be done, really from the top down, so you get a chance to see what it's supposed to look like, and how it should look on a day to day basis, not just on Sundays. You know, I think [that] will pay dividends for my future."
I'm not going to sit here and tell you Kenny Pickett was the prince who was promised. Or that he was worthy of the 20th overall pick in the draft, or even that the Steelers were wrong to move on from him.
But the way that Pittsburgh's brass went about doing it, the infrastructure they placed around Pickett, and the lack of top-down cohesion surrounding someone you spent extremely valuable draft capital on, was embarrassing.
And this offseason, the current quarteback situation further proves that.
"They throw a kid in there for two years and you’ve got an offense that doesn’t fit and doesn’t work, and they can’t run because their offensive line’s not even good enough for a run-blocking team," Steelers' former QB Terry Bradshaw told 103.7 The Buzz earlier this week regarding Pickett. "And therefore they say Pickett was a failure. He wasn’t a failure, the Steelers were a failure.”
What will Pickett in Cleveland look like?
The Browns’ first move of the offseason at the quarterback position was a surprise trade to acquire Kenny Pickett from the Philadelphia Eagles. Cleveland’s strategy was to throw multiple darts at the board in an effort to fix the quarterback position, and the former Steelers first-round pick is one of those bets. Head coach Kevin Stefanski will value Pickett’s ability to protect the football and efficiently operate the offense.
If Cleveland can reestablish a strong running game and the defense bounces back, Pickett may prove to be the kind of quarterback who can manage the offense well enough to keep the team competitive — and that might be all the Browns need in 2025. Entering the final year of his rookie deal, Pickett will be looking to earn his next contract, whether in Cleveland or elsewhere.
Alternatively, the Browns could choose to trade Pickett during roster cutdowns in August if he’s the odd man out among the four healthy quarterbacks on the roster. If he sticks around, Steelers fans may have the chance to see their former first-rounder line up against them this season.
– Brandon Little, A to Z Sports Cleveland
