PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – This list includes players who have never thrown a pass in the NFL, some of those rookies are picked higher than Kenny Pickett as CBS Sports selected the Steelers starter 28th in their NFL QB Power Rankings.
Pickett finished his first season with a 63% completion, 2,404 yards, seven touchdowns to nine interceptions. He had one interception in his last eight starts and won seven of the 12 games he started. It appears the Steelers have improved their offensive line while keeping their top seven receivers from last season and adding Allen Robinson and rookie Darnell Washington.
The 5 picked immediately above Pickett, to have a better season this year
· 27-CJ Stroud-Houston Texans-had tremendous numbers in college, but will have a worse receiving core and potentially worse offensive line in the NFL
· 26-Anthony Richardson-Colts-even when drafted considered unpolished, threw 24 touchdowns to 15 interceptions at Florida
· 25-Ryan Tannehill-Tennessee-he’ll be 35 years-old when the season starts and coming off his worst QBR (49.1) since he was with the Dolphins
· 24-Jordan Love-Green Bay-a lot of pressure on the former first-round pick who has one career start with three TD and three interceptions in his career. The offense around him has many more questions than the Steelers.
· 23-Jimmy Garoppolo-Las Vegas-9 years in the NFL and played one full season. He has options with that LV offense. Did he have better numbers at the end of his SF career because of him or Kyle Shanahan’s system?
Also listed ahead of Pickett in 2023
· 21-Bryce Young-Carolina-never thrown a pass in the NFL, does play in an easier division
· 20-Kyler Murray-Arizona-can he stay healthy, last year he won three of his 11 starts and threw for only 14 touchdowns
· 19-Russell Wilson-Denver-maybe a new coach will change everything, but Wilson won four of 15 starts last year with 16 touchdowns to 11 interceptions and plays in a difficult division
· 17-Tua Tagovailoa-Miami-no question he can be a game changer, but he hasn’t shown a lot of consistency and a big question mark about his health
· 16-Justin Fields-Chicago-no doubt a better runner than Pickett, hands down. But he barely completed 60% of his passes with 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions winning three of 15 starts. He has Chase Claypool as a key receiver
CBS Sports asks about Pickett ‘how far does grit get you? Apparently not far as Pickett is the only AFC North quarterback not in the Top 10 and the only quarterbacks expected to have a worse season than him—Mac Jones-New England, Baker Mayfield-Tampa Bay, Desmond Ridder-Atlanta and Sam Howell-Washington.