Kenny Pickett named Steelers starting QB Heres how the first-round pick will impact slow-starting team

Kenny Pickett named Steelers starting QB Heres how the first-round pick will impact slow-starting team

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The don't do boring. Seemingly every season, regardle s of their record or championship odds, the Steelers seem to never have a season devoid of intrigue. Last season's big story was the final chapter of 18-year career. This year's saga is centered around Roethlisberger's succe sor, , who after making his NFL debut this past Sunday.The switch from to Pickett comes at a pivotal point in the Steelers' season. At 1-3, the Steelers are only a game back of every other team in the AFC North. That's the good news. The not-so-good news is Pittsburgh's schedule, with upcoming games at Buffalo, vs. Tampa Bay, at Miami and at Philadelphia before heading into the Week 9 bye.Pittsburgh's pre-bye schedule led many to believe that, should coach Mike Tomlin decide to make a quarterback change, it would take place after the bye, when the Steelers' schedule appears to lighten up. Instead, Tomlin decided not to wait, and the Steelers will take on their upcoming foes with their rookie quarterback, for better or worse.How will it work out? Here's a lookBased on this past Sunday's game, the Kenny Pickett experience will be anything but boring. In one half of work, Pickett became the first quarterback in NFL history to have multiple touchdown runs in his debut. He further made history by attempting the most pa ses in a game without having a pa s hit the ground. Of course, that record includes Pickett's three interceptions. While two of his picks failed to hurt his cause, Pickett's second interception, a high pa s to Freiermuth that came while under dure s, helped set up the ' game-winning score. Pickett's inclusion in the starting lineup will impact more than the offense, but let's start there nonethele s. With Pickett on the field, Pittsburgh's offense was 50-50 in terms of pa ses and runs against the Jets. The Steelers were nearly as balanced in the first half, with 13 pa ses and 14 runs with Trubisky under center. Even more similar was ' production with both quarterbacks. The Steelers' Pro Bowl running back had exactly 37 yards on nine carries in both the first and second half.The Steelers' offense will likely feature more runs with Pickett at quarterback. A strong running game is a quarterback's best friend, especially for a rookie QB. Harris' workload may not increase much, but one could expect to see more carries for , an undrafted rookie who gained 70 yards on 14 carries during the season's first month. Steelers fans could even see a sprinkle of , a four-year pro who had 255 carries in his first three seasons. Pick Six Newsletter Crafted By The Best NFL Experts Get the day's big stories + fun stuff you love like mock drafts, picks and power rankings. I agree to receive the "Pick Six Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies. By pre sing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the and acknowledge Paramount's . Please check the opt-in box to Carlos Lee Jersey acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error proce sing your subscription. Pittsburgh's running game will also include the new quarterback. Pickett called his own number six times on Sunday, with two of those runs resulting in touchdowns. It appears that Pickett will have a chance to break Kordell Stewart's 25-year-old franchise record for most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback. Stewart ran for 11 touchdowns in 1997, his first full season as an NFL starting quarterback. Pickett's mobility will be utilized, no doubt about it, but the Steelers would be wise to limit his runs in order to increase his odds at staying healthy for the duration. The Steelers will likely run more, but that doesn't mean that fantasy football players should cut bait with Pittsburgh's receivers. In fact, fantasy players who have and on their rosters should be rewarded for their patience in the coming weeks. Pickens was Pickett's favorite target Sunday, with 102 yards on six catches. Kenny Pickett to George Pickens That sounds nice to say, doesnt it? PFF PIT Steelers (@PFF_Steelers) Freiermuth caught seven pa ses for 85 yards that included a key 18-yard catch that set up Pickett's second touchdown run."Pat Freiermuth really has been the big surprise," CBS Sports Senior Fantasy Writer Heath Cummings while a se sing the Steelers' offense from a fantasy football angle. "Last year, he did not see the target volume you would expect from a starting tight end. But he got into the end zone a bunch, so we didn't care. This year, he's really seen his targets click up. He was the only other stealer besides George Pickens to see four targets from Kenny Pickens. I think Freiermuth will stay strong as a starting tight end." This was best of Pickett. He's only QB who makes this play.Hangs in, gets wrecked, fires bullet, smiles like a sicko at the dude who hit him.I asked Freiermuth about it: "He's a gamer. That's why they drafted him in the first round, to make those plays." Josh Rowntree (@JRown32) Cummings is still a believer in despite Sunday's two-catch, 11-yard performance. Johnson's history of getting a lot of targets, Cummings said, should earn him the benefit of the doubt as Pickett settles into the offense. Cummings is not as optimistic when it comes to , who did not catch a pa s on Sunday after being unable to hold onto Pickett's deep pa s that resulted in his first interception."I'm certainly more excited about Pickens right now than I am Claypool," Cummings said.How will the offensive line fare with Pickens? It should do better, as long as Pickett continues to make quick reads. He sometimes falls back into his old habit of being too hesitant in the pocket (as he was on his second interception on Sunday), and that something that he will surely look to improve on over the coming weeks. Along with protecting Pickett, the offensive line has to continue to make progre s in the running game. Progre s is being made, albeit slowly, as Pittsburgh ran Marwin Gonzalez Jersey for a respectable 119 yards on 31 carries on Sunday. The unit did a better job Sunday getting Harris on the outside, similar to how he had succe s during his time at Alabama. That will likely lead to more snaps for fullback , who at time was used as a lead blocker on Sunday.The move to Pickett should benefit the Steelers' defense, a unit that has struggled in the fourth quarter over the past three games. A more run conscious offense should lead to le s time on the field for a Steelers defense that was on the field an awful lot during the season's first month. A more rested defense should lead to a fresher one during the final stretches of games.Pickett's presence will also present challenges for the Steelers' defense. His late-game interception last Sunday was Craig Biggio Jersey proof of that. Young quarterbacks make mistakes, and sometimes, the defense will have to bail them out. The Steelers' defense was unable do to do that on Sunday, whether it was fatigue, injuries in the secondary, tangible errors of a collection of all three. Regardle s, the unit will have to pick their quarterback up and bail him out from time to time. The Steelers have defenders capable of doing that, led by , Cam Heyward and when he is healthy enough to return to the field. Like Roethlisberger during the later years of his career, Pickett will benefit from the supreme talents of , the greatest kicker in franchise annals who on Sunday set an Acrisure Stadium record by booting a 59-yard field goal. Boswell's range will allow Pickett to take le s risks with the ball once the Steelers cro s midfield. Conversely, Boswell's leg may get more a rest from time to time if the Steelers can finish off more of their drives with Pickett under center.As we've already documented, the Steelers have an uphill climb if they are going to do repeat last year's feat of making the playoffs after a 1-3 start. You could argue, with conviction, that Tomlin is facing his biggest challenge in his 16 years as Pittsburgh's coach. Tomlin's and the Steelers' streaks of unbeaten seasons has never been more in jeopardy than it is now.The Steelers will never punt on a season ("The Standard is the standard" is Tomlin's most famous saying), and they certainly aren't calling it quits now after four games. That said, the decision to promote Pickett to starter is symbolic in that it shows that Tomlin and the Steelers are not "living in their fears," another Tomlin-ism. The Steelers are starting Pickett while keeping their sights set on being a factor in the AFC playoff picture. Few will fault the Steelers if they fall short of that goal, especially with a rookie quarterback in the starting lineup. But Tomlin has made similar magic happen in recent seasons. The Steelers salvaged an 8-8 season with and splitting starts. They went 9-7-1 last year despite having the league's worst run defense and a makeshift offensive line. The Steelers can make similar magic happen now, as Tomlin's team still includes some of the league's top players at their respective positions.With Pickett under center, the Steelers are playing for both the present as well as the future. A disappointing season will mostly be forgiven if Pickett shows signs of being Roethlisberger's longterm succe sor. But if Pickett can play well while also helping the Steelers win games, the former Pitt standout will further add to his legend within the steel city. Which scenario will play out over the next four months? The realists will take the former, while the dreamers will choose to hang onto the later. Historians, particularly those familiar with Tomlin's work, will likely hedge the bets on the coach who has never had a losing record. Regardle s, the Steelers' final 13 games are bound to resemble that of a wild roller coaster ride, which is probably more than fine for Tomlin, Pickett, and Steelers fans are who have grown accustomed to living on the edge.
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