There was a lot of talk surrounding Kenny Pickett‘s perfect preseason. Perhaps too much. No one expected it to follow him into the 2023 regular season opener versus the San Francisco 49ers. But no one (except the haters) expected him to perform as poorly as he did, either.
The Niners are tough — their Super Bowl-caliber ways didn’t budge during the offseason, and they appear to be continuing that trajectory. Concerns about how quarterback Brock Purdy would bounce back from the late-season elbow injury were erased from the first snap.
Buy Steelers TicketsPickett never found a rhythm, which showed in the final numbers: 31-of-46, 232 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions and five sacks. Social media had a field day with him early and often. His offensive line, which was expected to be improved from last season, wasn’t.
The struggles weren’t just Pickett’s. T.J. Watt tying James Harrison’s franchise sack record (80.5) aside, both sides of the ball seemed to be walking through cement for all four quarters. As said umpteen times by the FOX broadcasters, the 49ers are really, really good. But the Steelers looked really, really bad.
Pickett needs to dissect film, learn from his mistakes and proceed to completely erase the game and his ugly performance . Look forward, not back.
If you’re mentally weak, this game will eat you alive,” Pickett said on a recent Steel Here podcast. “I feel like I’m in a good place mentally, and I’m excited to get going.”
Hopefully, that attitude remains.
But if this is a sign of things to come in 2023, it will be a long season. It’s time to shake off that rust and regroup as Pittsburgh heads into Week 2 on a consecutive national game on the Monday Night Football stage against the rival (1-0) Cleveland Browns. They cannot afford to start the season 0-2.
