Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger offered up some criticism of rookie Kenny Pickett.
It’s tough to blame rookie Kenny Pickett for his pessimism.
Pittsburgh’s rookie quarterback is in the midst of a dismal stretch in arguably the worst offense in football. His development has been stunted in large part thanks to one man — offensive coordinator Matt Canada — who head coach Mike Tomlin refuses to fire.
But that’s neither here nor there.
Pickett was outspoken in his postgame presser, saying the he and many of the Steelers young players need to watch more tape. Penalties cannot be tolerated. It was a mature take from a young quarterback.
Steelers: Ben Roethlisberger’s criticism of Kenny Pickett
Of course, that’s not what Ben Roethlisberger noticed. The giant human pierogi/future Hall-of-Fame quarterback Roethlisberger has his own podcast, appropriately named as a jumble of syllables aka ‘Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger’.
On said pod, Big Ben called out Pickett for his lack of enthusiasm as it pertains to long offensive drives.
“I heard Kenny say during his press conference today…That when you have that many plays at some point you got to expect something bad to happen. I don’t know that you need to expect something bad, be confident. You’re able to drive the ball down the field, now it’s just a matter of what we are doing in the end zone,” Roethlisberger noted.
But that’s not where the advice ended. Pickett, if he’s smart, won’t listen to a word outside of his coaching staff and trusted allies.
“You’ve got nothing to lose,” Roethlisberger mumbled, surely with the remains of a crumbled napkin nearby. “I’m throwing the ball deep on first, second and third down. I’m letting it go. It doesn’t have to be a 7-step drop, you can catch it and throw a ball 10-12 yards down the field. I know Chris Hoke and Coach Cowher say run it, run it. I get it, but now you got to start doing something different.”
Except, this isn’t 2005. And a player like Roethlisberger, as great as he was, surely could’ve used more discipline in his on-field and specifically off-the-field activities.
Pickett has far more to lose, and a shorter leash given the Steelers could have a top-10 selection in a quarterback-heavy draft come 2023.
Pittsburgh wants Pickett to succeed, and despite a tough couple of weeks, he’s shown flashes. Hopefully, with a bye week at his disposal, we see some incremental improvements come Week 9.