NFL Rumors: Steelers ruin their 2024-25 Super Bowl chances a year ahead of time

The Pittsburgh Steelers enter the final week of the 2023 season with the opportunity to clinch a Wild Card spot. Their odds will increase if they beat the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday, who are resting their starters after winning the AFC North and clinching the No. 1 seed.

Quarterback Kenny Pickett isn't starting on Sunday. He recently recovered from a high ankle sprain, but head coach Mike Tomlin is riding the hot hand of Mason Rudolph. Even so, Pickett hadn't exactly instilled much confidence in the Steelers fanbase with his play.

With that, fans were already planning on running him out of town. If those fans wanted the team to find a new quarterback, they aren't going to like this latest update.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport mentioned on NFL GameDay that the Steelers still believe in Pickett and have no plans on moving on from him this upcoming offseason.

"Despite the fact that Mason Rudolph is going [vs. Ravens], my understanding is the organization does still believe in Kenny Pickett and in no way wants to move on from him after the season. Still a ton of confidence that he can be a franchise starter. It's really just a matter of playing, right now, the quarterback that gives them the best chance."

Steelers have no plans to move on from Kenny Pickett this offseason

Even though a portion of the fanbase has seen enough of Pickett and doesn't believe he is the quarterback to lead the team back to a Super Bowl, the Steelers still have faith in him, based on Rapoport's comments.

The Steelers didn't have to look far to scout Pickett, as he played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers. Once the 2022 NFL Draft rolled around, the Steelers selected Pickett with the 20th overall pick.

Pickett showed promise in his rookie season, helping lead comeback drives against the Ravens and the Las Vegas Raiders last season. But he did deal with injuries, much like he did this season. But in 2023, Pickett was supposed to take that next step, as he had fans hyped up with his exceptional play in the preseason. But, it never translated in a pivotal second year.

In 12 games, Pickett threw for 2,070 yards, six touchdowns, and four interceptions while completing 62.0 percent of his passes.

Rudolph, meanwhile, took over for Trubisky as the starter in Week 16, completing 17-of-27 pass attempts for 290 yards and two touchdowns in the team's 34-11 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. Rudolph had another strong performance in Week 17, leading the Steelers to a 30-23 win over the Seattle Seahawks after completing 18-of-24 passes for 274 yards.

The Steelers will find out their playoff fates after Saturday, when they face the Ravens at 4:25 p.m. ET. But this offseason, per Rapoport, the Steelers will operate with Pickett as their quarterback. Even so, Pickett will have to show improvement in his third year if he truly is brought back.