Steelers Now
Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett didn’t hold back when reflecting on his time with the Eagles, appearing to take a subtle shot at his former team during an interview with Browns media.
“I’m extremely grateful for my time in Philly,” Pickett said. “I just was shown how it’s supposed to be done, really, from the top down. So you get a chance to see what it’s supposed to look like and how it should look on a day-to-day basis, not just on Sundays. I think that will pay dividends for me in my future.”
Before joining the Eagles, Pickett spent two seasons with the Steelers, who selected him with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Once viewed as the potential heir to Ben Roethlisberger, Pickett showed flashes of late-game heroics but struggled to establish consistency in the offense.
To his credit, Pickett wasn’t operating under ideal circumstances. His offensive coordinator was Matt Canada, whose scheme was often criticized for being overly simplistic and predictable. The Steelers were heavily scrutinized for sticking with Canada as long as they did.
Questions surrounding the team’s direction only intensified during the 2024 offseason, when general manager Omar Khan stated at the NFL Combine that the team was “comfortable” moving forward with Pickett as the starter. Weeks later, Pittsburgh signed veteran Russell Wilson, a move that many viewed as a clear sign of miscommunication and internal dysfunction.
After a disappointing two-year stint in Pittsburgh, Pickett was traded to the Eagles for a fourth-round pick. In Philadelphia, he served as the backup to Jalen Hurts and was part of a Super Bowl-winning roster. This offseason, the Eagles traded Pickett to the Browns, where he now finds himself in a battle for the starting job, his first real shot to start since 2023.
Pickett isn’t the only former Steeler to allude to cultural issues within the organization. Wide receiver George Pickens, now with the Cowboys, recently told Dallas media, “It’s super refreshing with a different culture.”
With multiple former players now publicly questioning the environment in Pittsburgh, it raises an important question: Are these comments simply bitter reflections from players unhappy with how their tenures ended, or is there a deeper, systemic issue brewing within the Steelers’ organization?
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Kenny Pickett Takes Passive Aggressive Shot at Steelers
