Adults in the room? Latest Kenny Pickett insult reads a lot like a Browns cheap shot

It was a second straight encouraging performance for Russell Wilson and the new-look Pittsburgh Steelers offense on Monday Night Football. Sure, Pittsburgh failed to crack 30 points — largely thanks to poor execution in the red zone — and the New York Giants don't represent the stiffest competition in the world. But nearly seven yards per play and over 400 total yards speak for themselves: The Steelers looked ruthlessly efficient with Wilson at the helm, getting the ball out quickly and uncorking some patented moonballs to Calvin Austin III and George Pickens.

It's quite the difference from last season, when Matt Canada and a rotating cast of quarterbacks seemed to put on a new episode of their very own soap opera every week. This Steelers offense has come a very long way in just a few months' time, and when you combine that production with a defense that looks as ferocious as ever, and it's easy to be excited about how this team is playing — and where it could be headed in a wide-open AFC.

But at least one member of the media thinks that what's changed with the Pittsburgh offense is about much more than what fans are seeing on the field each Sunday. And he took a little shot at an arch rival (and a former quarterback) to make his point.

Steelers insider throws Kenny Pickett under the bus while praising new offense

Long-time San Francisco radio voice Joe Starkey was asked on Thursday for his opinion of the Steelers offense, and he had nothing but nice things to say about the job Wilson and new OC Arthur Smith have done. Not just on the field, but more importantly in the locker room.

"It's only going to get better. There's adults in the room. There's no more [former quarterback] Kenny Pickett. There's no more [former offensive coordinator] Matt Canada. There's adults in the room. Russell Wilson has been there and done that many times, including, contrary to popular belief, just last season in Denver, with a coach who hated him. Arthur Smith has come in and lent a professionalism to the offense."

If that "adults in the room" line sounds familiar, it should: It's exactly how the Cleveland Browns justified dumping Baker Mayfield in favor of Deshaun Watson back in 2022. Of course, that sounded at the time like some wishful thinking, Cleveland saying whatever it had to say to justify what it thought of as a talent upgrade at QB. (How quaint that idea seems now.) In Pittsburgh, though, it's hard to argue with the assessment.

It's not just that Canada and Pickett failed to put a functional offense on the field last season. It's that every week brought fresh drama, whether it was Canada reportedly icing out his assistant coaches or Pickett responding to being benched in favor of Mason Rudolph by initially throwing a fit. It was clear that, in addition to the lack of talent and fresh ideas, egos were getting in the way. And while there's still plenty left for this Pittsburgh offense to prove, that problem at least seems to have been solved: Despite plenty of potential for melodrama so far this season, Smith, Wilson and Justin Fields have all managed to keep things pointed in the right direction.

As for the Browns, well, let's just say they're relieved to finally have a different adult in the room.