Steelers Now
Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi recently offered an interesting clarification about his former quarterback and former Pittsburgh Steelers first-round pick Kenny Pickett during an appearance on 99.4 The Fan.
Pickett, who was traded from the Steelers to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2024, spending just one season with his hometown Eagles, reportedly wanted out of Philadelphia because he believed he wouldn’t have a legitimate opportunity to compete with Jalen Hurts.
“He begged to be traded because he wanted to compete and he felt like he wasn’t going to have a chance to beat out Jalen Hurts,” Narduzzi said.
That echoed the reason he left the team that selected him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Originally viewed as the heir to Ben Roethlisberger‘s throne, Pickett’s NFL career has gone almost exactly opposite of what the Steelers envisioned. Drafted in the first round to become the franchise quarterback, Pickett instead became one of the organization’s biggest recent draft disappointments. After just two underwhelming seasons, Pickett requested a trade after the Steelers signed veteran Russell Wilson in the 2024 offseason.
Pickett got the opportunity he was looking for when he was traded to Cleveland before the 2025 season, but he couldn’t capitalize, failing to beat out veteran journeyman Joe Flacco during training camp. Cleveland quickly moved on, dealing him to the Las Vegas Raiders, where he backed up Geno Smith.
When his number was called, the results did little to change the narrative surrounding his career. Pickett struggled in limited relief appearances, was eventually benched after a poor outing against the Kansas City Chiefs, and finished the season with an abysmal 3.4 QBR.
Despite all of that, Narduzzi still has complete confidence in his former quarterback.
“Competition makes everybody better,” Narduzzi said. “He’s a competitor. He wants to play. He’s an outstanding football player.”
Bryce Young has firmly established himself as Carolina’s franchise quarterback, making it highly unlikely Pickett will see the field unless an injury forces him into action.
Backups are an extremely valuable part of the NFL, and Pickett can still carve out a respectable career in that role. But it’s difficult to ignore just how dramatically his trajectory has changed. Just two offseasons ago, many Steelers fans still believed he deserved another chance to be Pittsburgh’s franchise quarterback. Now, after spending time with four different organizations in roughly two years, the league appears to have reached a very different conclusion. A player once drafted to be the face of a franchise is now fighting to establish himself as a long-term backup.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Why Ex-Steelers QB Kenny Pickett ‘Begged’ for Trade from Eagles
