NFL
Why isn’t Kenny Pickett playing against the Bills in the Wild Card game?
After starting the first 13 games of the 2023-24 season, Pickett hasn’t featured since 3 December, with Mason Rudolph taking over as quarterback.
Could Kenny Pickett’s days at the Pittsburgh Steelers be numbered? Earlier this week, coach Mike Tomlin confirmed the quarterback wouldn’t be starting the Wild Card game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium, which was postponed from Sunday to Monday because of snow storms in New York City.
Other than T.J. Watt, who has a knee injury, the Steelers should have a full complement of starters on offense, which now won’t include Pickett, who was a first pick until just a few weeks ago.
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Why did Pickett lose his place as starting quarterback?
The 25-year-old started the first 13 games of the season, in which Pittsburgh had a 7-6 record. He threw only six touchdowns in those games before suffering an ankle injury in week 13, which looks to have cost him his starting role.
The Steelers lost their first two matches - to the Patriots and the Colts - without him but have since run into form, with three consecutive victories against the Bengals, the Seahawks, and the Ravens allowing them to sneak into the playoffs just in the nick of time.
Mason Rudolph leads Steelers into playoffs with three straight wins
It is impossible to say whether they would have done so with Pickett starting ahead of Mason Rudolph, his replacement. Still, Tomlin is adopting a “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach as the postseason action gets underway.
Last Tuesday, the Steels coach revealed he would be “staying with the hot hand and not upsetting the apple cart” about his starting quarterback. Rudolph threw for 716 yards and three touchdowns without an interception in the last three games of the regular season.
Three wins in a row should put Pittsburgh in a confident mood to face the Bills, the only spanner in the works being their upcoming opponents are on a five-game winning streak. Something will have to give in Orchard Park on Monday, but Pickett will be watching from the sidelines as his team plays its biggest game of the season.
You can follow all the NFL postseason action on AS USA.