Steelers’ Kenny Pickett Sends Message on Offense’s Hot Preseason Start

The Pittsburgh Steelers first-team offense has played three drives this preseason, and all three have ended in touchdowns.

All three of those touchdowns were also at least 25 yards in length. The Steelers had one offensive touchdown of at least 25 yards the entire 2022 season.

Based on the first two preseason games, there are a lot of reasons to be excited about the Pittsburgh offense. One of the top reasons is quarterback Kenny Pickett. But Pickett tried to halt the hype train for the unit just a bit when he spoke to reporters on August 21.

“It is preseason, man,” Pickett told the media according to The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly. “Nothing counts, so it is kind of easy to remain motivated because we haven’t done anything yet. Everybody understands that.”

The Steelers are 2-0 this preseason and will end the exhibition slate at the Atlanta Falcons on August 24. But to state the obvious to support Pickett’s point, when the NFL regular season starts on September 7, everyone will have a fresh start at 0-0.

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QB Kenny Pickett, Steelers Offense Exploding During Preseason

Pickett and the Steelers offense is correct to feel as though they haven’t accomplished anything yet. But it’s still better to be playing well during the preseason as opposed to needing to make a ton of corrections.

“I am not going to lie, it’s been good,” Pickett said. “We have been keeping (the offense) basic, but we just want to keep executing the offense at the level we are.”

Offensive coordinator Matt Canada admitted the sample size is small, but he also expressed his pleasure with how things have gone through two preseason games.

“We are happy with the trajectory we are at with some of the things we wanted to see,” Canada told the media. “When you go out there, you play to be successful, and that’s what we have done. We have experimented and tried different things.”

Pittsburgh’s first-team offense played 17 snaps total in the preseason matchups versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Buffalo Bills. Pickett has gone 9-for-11 with 113 passing yards and 2 touchdowns.

On the six running plays, the Steelers have rushed for 81 yards, including a 62-yard touchdown.

The first-team offense is also a perfect 3-for-3 on third downs. The Steelers have needed at least seven yards to convert all three of those attempts.

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Changes Coming to Steelers Offense in Regular Season

Another reason it’s important not to get too carried away with Pittsburgh’s offense this preseason is the expected changes coming to the unit in September.

Both Canada and Pickett told the media on August 21 that the team has kept the offense very simple during the preseason. There will be a lot more for players to execute in the regular season.

“We just want to continue to do that until we get the full playbook,” Pickett said. “We have been very vanilla, and we are going to do that until it is time to go. We understand it is just the preseason.”

Starting running back Najee Harris has also been limited this preseason. Canada will have to work Harris back into the lineup while continuing to find carries for Jaylen Warren.

Kaboly noted that the offensive line hasn’t really been tested yet with a lot of repetitions.

In theory, a more intricate playbook, dual-threat backfield and seasoned offensive line should make the Steelers offense even better during the regular season.

But none of that is guaranteed. Hence, why Pickett isn’t putting too much stock in what the offense has done this preseason.

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