Things didn’t work out between the Pittsburgh Steelers and new Philadelphia Eagles backup quarterback Kenny Pickett. Pickett was the local hero and the Steelers first-round pick but after just two tumultuous seasons, Pickett is out and the Steelers have completely rebuilt their depth chart with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields.
Pickett spoke to the media as a member of the Eagles this week and talked about how things ended with the Steelers and that fateful game last season where he reportedly refused to dress for the game as the team’s third quarterback.
“I just thought it was time,” Pickett said. “It felt like it was time from the things that transpired, and I wanted a chance to go somewhere else and continue to grow my career.”
Pickett reportedly asked for a trade shortly after he was informed that the team was signing Wilson as a free agent. He did this, presumably because he didn’t feel like he’d have a chance to compete for the starting job. Now he finds himself in Philadelphia where Jalen Hurts is one of the best quarterbacks in the league and he’s relegated to backup once again.
“I handled it the way I should’ve handled it,” Pickett went on. The more that comes out about this situation, the more it sounds like Pickett quit on his team last season and felt entitled to his job back after it. I’m glad the Steelers didn’t feel that same way and he is clearly a guy who couldn’t handle the idea of an earned demotion.
Kenny Pickett says he felt it was time to move on from Pittsburgh and go somewhere he could grow his career #Eagles pic.twitter.com/YCYO3Z0FEY
— Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks) March 18, 2024
