BUFFALO (93.7 The Fan) – What did Kenny Pickett think of his game and also the hit from his old college teammate? Pickett breaks down his first NFL start, a 38-3 loss at Buffalo.
First start
Pickett went where a lot of people go now when faced with the questions after a game ‘I have to go back and watch it’. That’s understandable and factual to a point.
Pickett’s initial thoughts were that it was a day he dreamt of. He’s got to be better in the red zone, felt like they moved the ball but couldn’t finish. He says the blame starts with him and he’ll improve faster when he looks to himself to get better.
“I mean, I felt comfortable,” Pickett said. “I knew where to go with the football. The game wasn't moving too fast for me. I was seeing things. Guys were doing what they were supposed to be doing.”
“We just weren't consistent throughout. And again, red zone drives that we didn't score. So, it's things that have to be a lot better. There's a lot of points left out there. That's on us.”
“I thought he was highly competitive,” said Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin. “But I’m not dissecting it in this way as I stand here right now. We got smashed, and that’s the only perspective that I have.”
“I understand the nature of your question. It’s his first start, so you’ve got to write a story, etcetera, but football is the ultimate team game. That’s why we all love it so much. That’s why we all respect it so much. And we got smashed as a collective today. So, I don’t have a lot of individual analysis.”
Chase Claypool said Pickett did everything they needed him to do. Guard James Daniels, more from him coming up, said Pickett was a true pro in how he handled everything.
“Just a competitor, the game was out of hand early & you look at the way he played,” Daniels said. “The way he approached the snap, every play, you couldn’t tell. He did a really good job of competing in a hostile environment. Of course, it’s not the result we wanted."
"I’m proud of how he competed, how he handled himself, stayed composed and handled the huddle.”
The hits
There were a couple of hits that were questionable from a Steelers standpoint on Pickett. The first came as he was sliding down in the third quarter, giving himself up and was hit by Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin.
Immediately Daniels came over and popped Hamlin drawing a personal foul penalty and it was followed by Kevin Dotson committing one as well.
“He’s our franchise QB,” Daniels said. “I was shocked they didn’t throw the flag because I do know if there are some other QBs in the NFL if that same exact situation happened they easily would have thrown the flag (I wonder what quarterback he might be referring to). I was upset.”
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“I was upset there was no flag. I didn’t know until after I hit the guy. I thought they threw the flag. I thought it would be offsetting penalties. I didn’t know it would just be on me. It’s unfortunate, it put us third and forever.”
“I had a problem that the officials didn’t have a problem,” Tomlin said. “Not necessarily Hamlin, I love Hamlin. He’s a 412-er. He plays hard. He’s a good kid. I had a problem it was officiated in a way that I anticipated it being officiated.”
Pickett said he thought he slid early enough, but admitted the game is played pretty fast. He said he was going full speed and so was Hamlin. The same Hamlin that was his teammate for four years at Pitt.
“I'm fine with D-Ham,” Pickett said. “That's one of my guys. He will be one of my really good friends for a long time. We're competing, it's all good.”
As for the second one, Pickett was rolling out with just over a minute to play in the game and Shaq Lawson hit him low. Pickett thought Lawson may have been going after his knee and as he was getting up, shoved him.
“I have to watch it again,” Pickett said minutes after the game. “But from my opinion, I felt like he went after my knee after I threw it and that's it. Tempers flare. I don't care. I'm going to keep playing until the last play of the game, that was it. So, all good with me.”
Pickett said it was a day he was dreaming about his entire life. I’m sure the dream had a different ending. He’ll now go from dueling likely the best quarterback in the game now to maybe the best quarterback ever.
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No one said it would be easy.