Kaboly: Sans Matt Canada, Kenny Pickett looked great. Is it really that simple?
CINCINNATI — Mason Cole let out a hearty chuckle when asked about the game’s first play.
“Hey, I just run the plays that are called,” the Pittsburgh Steelers’ center said.
But come on now. Anybody with even an ounce of knowledge about the Steelers knows that some of the most persistent gripes about the offense — other than coordinator Matt Canada’s perceived ineptitude — were the lack of: plays under center; play-action passes; throws over the middle of the field; and throws to the tight end.
So you are telling me that the first play new signal-caller Mike Sullivan dialed up — an under-center, play-action pass between the numbers to tight end Pat Freiermuth — in Sunday’s 16-10 win over the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium was just a coincidence?
“It was nothing anybody said,” quarterback Kenny Pickett said with a hint of a smirk. “It was what the defense showed us preparation-wise. It was a good start.”
The play went for 24 yards, and more importantly, set the tone for the game and for Pickett. Nobody would admit following the Steelers’ biggest offensive output in close to 60 games that the play call was a subtle middle finger aimed at detractors of the team’s offense, but it was more than implied.
Kenny Pickett on needing a performance like he had today pic.twitter.com/uXen5CD0lZ— Mark Kaboly November 26, 2023
There’s nothing wrong with having some fun ..., er, much-needed fun.
The Steelers looked like a different team with running backs coach Eddie Faulkner — who coordinated the offense during the week — and Sullivan, the quarterbacks coach and play-caller, splitting up Canada’s duties six days after his firing . They looked like a different team despite managing only one touchdown and 16 points against a defense that very well could be one of the five worst in the NFL .
And there was a reason for that — they were having fun.
N0w, there is only one difference between this week and the previous 10, and you can figure that out.
“I don’t know how to say this without being too explicit, but more willingness to take shots,” running back Jaylen Warren said when asked about the changes. “Taking more risks.”
Pickett threw passes four passes that traveled at least 20 yards in the air, two of which were complete.
“The energy was different,” receiver Diontae Johnson said.
That is typically the reaction when a team puts up 424 yards, including 278 passing yards from Pickett, the second most of his career. Sure, he didn’t throw a touchdown, and it was once again a one-score game, but this was something that Pickett needed.
I know this might be hyperbole, but the firing of Canada might have salvaged Pickett’s career. A week after the worst performance of his career, where everything from his arm strength to his accuracy to his toughness was questioned, Pickett got what he needed against the Bengals.
And I am not quite sure the Pickett we saw Sunday would have been the same Pickett if things had stayed status quo this week. Of course, that’s impossible to determine from one game against a struggling defense on a team with a backup quarterback. But the version of Pickett from a week or a few ago seemed not to be having fun at all. When you play poorly, those things tend to happen.
On Sunday, he went 10 of 14 for 165 yards on third down, and the offense didn’t have a single three-and-out. And for an offense that was the butt of many jokes this year, that was an accomplishment in itself.
Pickett also completed all seven of his attempts inside the numbers and didn’t turn the ball over for the seventh straight game. In the last four games under Canada, Pickett’s passer rating was 75.3. On Sunday, it was 97.8.
Coincidence?
“Coach Sully was seeing it really well and what they were calling, putting us in good positions to be successful, and we went out there and executed,” Pickett said. “So that’s kind of how it’s got to go and how it’s got to be going forward.”
Sure, Pickett missed one to an open George Pickens and was a tad late to Johnson in the end zone in the first quarter, even though Johnson should’ve caught it for a touchdown. But Pickett was the best he has been since ... maybe forever. People have been clamoring for Pickett to play a four-quarter game for the first time in his career, and he came close to it.
“Kenny wanted to go out there —” Cole said before cutting himself off. “It was nice to see him go out there and have success and get back on the right track.”
Kenny Pickett passing charts.Last week vs this week.
BIG difference. #Steelers pic.twitter.com/OP57Zh9YTi
— Josh Rowntree November 26, 2023
And have fun. That’s what stood out, and it’s not by coincidence that Sullivan and Faulkner are two fun-loving guys. Many would say the complete opposite of Canada.
“I thought he played well,” receiver Allen Robinson said of Pickett. “The spots on the field that the defense was giving us, he took it. The play calling just had a good flow to it.”
Could it be as simple as that? Probably not. Even though the Steelers have a stretch of winnable games ahead of them against Arizona , New England , Indianapolis and Cincinnati (all but Indianapolis at home), there is no guarantee that this offense will put up 400 yards again.
But at least now it feels like there is potential to do that. Could it be the difference between Pickett becoming a franchise quarterback instead of a first-round bust?
“I don’t get the quarterback scrutiny all the time,” Cole said. “At that position, it is a credit to you (when you win), and when they aren’t (winning), it is your fault. I don’t think people from the outside know what it is like to be put in that position. He is a young quarterback in this league and will have some ups and downs. Maybe he hasn’t played his best ball the past couple of weeks, but we know he is good.
“We saw that in the past, we saw that again today. Kenny is a heck of a ball player and a leader.”
And confident ... like he was in the preseason, when he had a perfect passer rating and led five touchdown drives in five possessions, leading many to expect greatness now and every game.
That was the biggest difference between old Kenny and Kenny on Sunday. He was confident with his throws and put them into catchable spaces. That’s been a huge issue over the past two months.
Regardless of what he said and what Mike Tomlin said, Pickett really needed this game. It might just be a blip of good in a sea of bad, but at least there is a renewed hope that he can be a quarterback who can win championships.
Sure, I’m taking a leap there — after they scored 16 points, and Pickett threw no touchdowns — but Sunday’s game could have easily been 30-10, and then what would we be saying?
Well, Tomlin would downplay it and say what he said anyway: “Guys like myself and Kenny, we are judged on winning and losing. We don’t run from that, we run to that, so he and I are winners today.”
Now, can they be winners next week?
(Photo: Dylan Buell / )
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