Steelers: How Kenny Pickett can remind fans of Ben Roethlisberger in his first start
Everything points against the rookie heading into Sunday. For his first career start, Kenny Pickett will lead the Pittsburgh Steelers into battle against the toughest team in the league. The Buffalo Bills. It's a tough place to be for a rookie, but that's the way of the NFL. In this league, life moves fast and […]
Everything points against the rookie heading into Sunday. For his first career start, Kenny Pickett will lead the Pittsburgh Steelers into battle against the toughest team in the league. The Buffalo Bills.
It's a tough place to be for a rookie, but that's the way of the NFL. In this league, life moves fast and nothing is guaranteed. Just ask Mitch Trubisky, who went from unquestioned starter and team captain to benchwarmer in the blink of an eye.
Pickett's first start for Pittsburgh couldn't have come against a more difficult opponent. And no, I don't mean that in a romantic way about the Bills being the Super Bowl favorites. I mean that literally.
Heading into this game, the Bills have the #1 pass defense in the NFL. That's true if you're seeking traditional stats like yards per game or advanced efficiency metrics like DVOA. The Bills – even without starting CB Tre'Davious White and even without safety Micah Hyde for the past couple of weeks – are the very best in the league defending the pass.
If the Steelers are looking for some silver lining regarding Sunday's game, they can look within franchise history. According to sideline reporter Missi Matthews, the last rookie quarterback to beat the #1 pass defense in his first career start was none other than Ben Roethlisberger.
That happened in 2004 when the Steelers beat the Miami Dolphins 13-3. As you can guess from the scoreboard, it wasn't the prettiest of games for Big Ben and the offense.
In fact, the Dolphins held Roethlisberger down to 165 passing yards and a 55% completion percentage. The Steelers' rookie quarterback had one touchdown and one pick. It was a weird week for everyone involved as the rainy game was even pushed back into the night because of Hurricane Jeanne.
But Roethlisberger would start his career on a good note by clinching the game late in the game:
"Pittsburgh (2-1) clinched the victory on quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's 7-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Hines Ward with 6 minutes 16 seconds left," Charlie Nobles would write for The New York Times.
For Kenny Pickett to follow Roethlisberger's steps, he'll have to do way more than that. The Steelers' defensive struggles have become evident without T.J. Watt in the lineup and they'll face one of the most dangerous attacks in the league led by MVP favorite Josh Allen.
There's no question the Steelers have weapons, though. Their group of pass-catchers is legit and the offensive line is underrated. Can this coaching staff put Pickett and the offense in a position to succeed?
If the Steelers' newest quarterback pulls off a miracle, he'll remind fans of beloved figure Ben Roethlisberger.
It's a tall task against the Bills, who are efficient on both sides of the ball. But this is why we watch sports, right? Any given Sunday.
Featured image via Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports
