A former Steelers scapegoat throws Kenny Pickett under the bus without hint of irony

The Pittsburgh Steelers dumped Kenny Pickett, a Pitt product, in favor of Super Bowl-winning quarterback Russell Wilson. At this point in his career, Wilson is little more than a game manager, but he doesn't turn the ball over. For a defensive coach like Mike Tomlin, Wilson is far more tolerable than a project like Pickett.

When Pickett asked Tomlin who would be the starter in training camp, the Steelers coach leaned on the new vet. Wilson was always bound to get the first shot with the starters, though Pickett had the opportunity to compete. Pickett was not happy with that explanation, and thus asked for a trade. Pittsburgh quickly dealt him across the state to Philadelphia, where he will back up Jalen Hurts.

Pickett had some obvious flaws in his field vision and ability to throw over the middle. While he didn't turn the ball over much, Pickett also failed to gel with offensive coordinator Matt Canada. That's on both parties, but the Steelers aren't losing much production by rolling with Wilson and Justin Fields as their quarterbacks this season.

Le'Veon Bell states the obvious about Steelers and Kenny Pickett

Le'Veon Bell is one of the better running backs in Steelers history, and that is saying something. This is the same franchise which once possessed bell-cows Franco Harris and Jerome Betts. Unfortunately, Bell opted to sit out a full season and sign with the New York Jets, and was never the same. The Steelers were right not to pay Bell, as he was entering his late-20's. Nonetheless, Le'Veon remains an active social media personality, and gave his take on the Wilson debate.

A CBS analyst suggested that Wilson was only 'slightly' better than Pickett, which is ridiculous. Wilson definitely has some flaws -- some of which could get him benched in favor of Justin Fields -- but it's tough to argue that the Steelers didn't upgrade their quarterback room this offseason.

Tomlin knows what he has in Wilson. While he's not productive enough to win a Super Bowl, Wilson is a stable veteran who does the bare minimum for Pittsburgh. Pickett somehow underperformed and accomplished less than that.

Bell himself was a former scapegoat for the Steelers problems. Before he left Pittsburgh, Bell was blamed for locker room disruption and closing a Super Bowl window. It turns out that was only partly true, thanks to Antonio Brown and Ben Roethlisberger.