As the Pittsburgh Steelers head into the back half of the 2023 regular season, their quarterback still hasn’t shown he can play consistently for all 60 minutes. Kenny Pickett is quickly building a sort of dual reputation as a slow starter which in turn allows him to lead these impressive late-game comebacks.
Unfortunately, poor starts and fourth-quarter theatrics are stressful and honestly we aren’t sure if it is a sustainable way of doing business. Head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about Pickett’s dismal 75 quarterback rating in the first three quarters and Tomlin was ready.
Tomlin immediately fired back with “What is his rating in the fourth quarter?” to which the reporter said 108.
“Well just ask it from that perspective ,” Tomlin said. “He’s awesome in the fourth quarter, man he rises up in those moments. He wants to be the reason why we’re successful. He prepares his tail off. In some instances where people run from challenges, he runs to challenges. And so, that’s why his performance is so good in the fourth. Those other quarters we’ll work on.”
Tomlin acknowledged that the team needs to get off to a faster start and be more consistent with the team’s production and performance. On Thursday against the Tennessee Titans, Pittsburgh saw a resurgence in the run game, and Tomlin seemed happy about it.
“Yeah, it was huge,” Tomlin said. “I thought the balance was there. You know, 22 (Najee Harris) and 30 (Jaylen Warren) ran the ball great. The line was firing off the ball, they were protecting really well. Stayed clean for the majority of the game. So, that’s kind of what we’re trying to get to here.”
Setting up the team for success early in games has to center around the run game and keeping opposing offenses off of the field.
