There is a real possibility that in the next month, the Pittsburgh Steelers will only have one quarterback on the roster. The Steelers have released Mitch Trubisky and it seems highly unlikely Mason Rudolph will re-sign with the team.
This means that at least in the short run, Pickett is going to be it. After the regular season, when asked if he believed the 2024 starting quarterback was on the team, head coach Mike Tomlin said yes.
Let’s hope Tomlin is rethinking that idea and doesn’t get complacent with Pickett as the starter. The Steelers have been reportedly connected to guys like Ryan Tannehill and Justin Fields and the 2024 NFL draft has a very strong quarterback class.
Last season the Steelers passing offense was anemic and it all started with Pickett. The confident passer we saw in preseason disappeared when the regular season started. This led to him not getting his starting job back despite his recovery from ankle surgery. Pittsburgh cannot rely on bargain-basement free agents and developmental rookies to round out the depth chart if they want to force Pickett to either put up or shut up.