As Ray Huff sat down with his family Friday at Live Casino Pittsburgh’s Sports & Social restaurant in Hempfield, he was shocked to learn that the Steelers traded quarterback Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles.
After finishing his last year at Pitt, Pickett was selected in the first round by the Steelers in 2022. A month into his first campaign, he took over as the team’s starting quarterback, and that was where he stayed—at least formally—until Friday’s trade.
The Eagles trade was verified to TribLive on Friday by a league source.
“They didn’t give the kid a chance,” Portage resident Huff said.
Huff, a devoted supporter of the Pittsburgh Panthers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, is worried about Russell Wilson’s durability. Wilson, a 12-year NFL veteran, was just acquired by the Steelers following two seasons with the Denver Broncos.
The loss of Pickett should come with some staffing changes, Huff said, starting with head coach Mike Tomlin.
“I think if Pickett’s gone, (Tomlin) ought to go, too,” he said.
Gus Rigas, of Verona, agrees.
“The coach has got to go,” he said, adding that he would have liked to see Pickett spend a little more time in Pittsburgh.
While visiting friends in Pittsburgh, Kevin Meloni, of Long Island, N.Y., stopped by the Strip District to buy a powder blue Sidney Crosby jersey when he saw a group of people buying Pickett T-shirts.
“They took a ‘L,’” joked Meloni. “There’s no refunds over there.”
A Chicago Bears fan, Meloni opposed fans who predict the Steelers will acquire free agent quarterback Justin Shields, who the Bears drafted No. 1 in 2021 after graduating from Ohio State.
“Your Steelers are not going to touch my Justin Fields, I tell you that,” he said.
But Ohio State grad Jeff Slezak, of Cranberry, feels just the opposite — he would like to see Fields come to the Steelers.
“He was never going to be anything,” Slezak said of Pickett. “I think we’ve already seen that. I don’t love (that we have Wilson), but I get it.”
His friend, Connor Duddy, of Pittsburgh’s North Hills, said he’s glad Pickett is leaving.
“I was pretty happy,” he said. “I called my dad and said, ‘I told you so.’”
For Matt Zegarelli, the Steelers’ decision to let go of Pickett and backup quarterback Mitch Trubisky is a good move.
“I love it. I mean, they’re trying to win,” said Zegarelli, of North Huntingdon. “I feel like they have a really good shot at, at least being a playoff team — winning playoff games — this year.”
Zegarelli would like to see the Steelers bring in Fields.
Zegarelli’s wife, Erin, was sad to see former backup quarterback Mason Rudolph leave, joining the Tennessee Titans in free agency. But she was pleasantly surprised the Steelers would make this many changes to their quarterback roster.
“I’m actually happy they made a move,” Erin Zegarelli said. “I just feel like they do the same thing (every year) and it’s not any different.”
Bob Marino, of Cheswick, said he thought Pickett did OK for a while, but had a difficult time playing up to the level of better teams.
But the Steelers’ mediocre season can’t be blamed solely on Pickett, he said.
“You can’t just point at one person and say, ‘You’re the reason we didn’t win,’” Marino said. “It’s still a team game.”
Mark Stitt, of Ford City, has mixed feelings about the trade.
“I, like everybody else, wanted great things for Kenny Pickett,” he said.
Between injuries and being benched in favor of other quarterbacks, Pickett didn’t have enough time to grow and meet the demands of the NFL, Stitt said.
DJ Givner, manager at Tom’s Watch Bar in Pittsburgh’s North Shore, is excited to see what Wilson will do.
“You’ve got a Hall of Fame-caliber quarterback coming in who’s already won a Super Bowl,” Givner said. “I think it’s exciting for the area. We want Pittsburgh to get back to its winning ways again.”
For Mark Zuzich, Wilson has proven himself a talented professional while Pickett didn’t live up to expectations.
“Kenny had an opportunity for the last year-and-a-half, two years. It just didn’t seem like he really had it to play in the NFL,” said Zuzich, of Penn Township. “It’s a whole different ball game. I think maybe he’ll do better somewhere else. I wish him well.”
Being a young athlete, Pickett’s chances at a good professional career are likely, according to Dan Hearn, of Braddock Hills.
“He was a good quarterback,” Hearn said. “He just didn’t have the protection. And he’s young. He’ll do all right, going to Philly. He just needs time.”
With the 2024 football season about six months away and the Steelers lacking a backup to Wilson, it’s too early to predict how the quarterback changes will play out, said Mia Angelini.
“I think with all these moves, it’s still too early for me to feel strongly either way,” said Angelini, of Houston. “They’re still making so many moves.”
