Kenny Pickett denies rumors he refused to be Steelers’ QB2 Sunday

PITTSBURGH — Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett strongly denied rumors Tuesday that he refused to appear as Mason Rudolph's backup against the Seahawks.

“It was either I was going to start and play,” Pickett said, “or if they didn't think I was good enough to do that, healthy enough, I was going to be the 3 and not m 'dress.

Pickett, who was inactive in the Week 17 win over the Seahawks despite being listed as questionable before the game, opened the five-minute scrimmage with local media Tuesday by saying the rumors, which began to spread on social media Sunday evening, were false and “attacked my character and who I am as a person.”

“There was no talk of me being a backup quarterback this week in terms of being No. 2,” Pickett said. “If I was healthy enough to play and the coaches and trainers thought I looked good enough to play, I was going to start and play. If they believed I wasn't – which they thought I wasn't – I was I'm not going to get dressed and get ready for the game.

“So whoever reported this, I don't know where it started, it's kind of crazy what people will write and post to try to prove their point or help their point. view or their career and what you do. But disappointed to see this without any proof or basis.

Pickett, who underwent TightRope surgery for a sprained ankle on Dec. 4 and was medically cleared to play late last week, also said he would suit up and be the No. 1 quarterback 2 behind Rudolph in Saturday's regular season finale against the Baltimore Ravens.

“This week, I’m now number 2,” Pickett said. “They're feeling good four weeks post-surgery so I can get dressed and be the 2. So I'll be the 2 and I'll do what I need to do to be ready to leave Baltimore.”

Pickett has not played since aggravating his ankle injury in the first half against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 13. Mitch Trubisky started the next two games against the New York Patriots. England and the Indianapolis Colts both lost, but was benched in the final two minutes against the Colts for long-time replacement Rudolph.

Rudolph started and won the next two games to keep the Steelers' playoff hopes alive. Coach Mike Tomlin announced the decision Monday to take the hot hand and start Rudolph against the Ravens.

“We're going to leave the ball in Mason Rudolph's hands,” Tomlin said. “He did a good job and we did a good job over the last two weeks. We took care of the ball; he took care of the ball. We scored points at a rate that we didn't realize “I haven’t done that yet this year. And with the urgency of the moment, and for these reasons, we are going to leave the ball in his hands. But I say all these things knowing that I know Kenny is very capable. “, and especially in terms of this game, Kenny led us to victory late in games the last two times we played against Baltimore. And so, we feel like we have two capable guys.”

With Rudolph at quarterback, the Steelers have scored 34 and 30 points in back-to-back wins, and the offense is averaging more than 400 yards per game in each of those contests. Rudolph also threw for 290 and 274 yards. Pickett, meanwhile, has averaged 172.5 yards per game in 12 starts this season and has six touchdowns to four interceptions.

“As a competitor, you want the ball,” Pickett said. “I want the ball in the most crucial situations of the game. I want the ball in the biggest games of the season, and that's what you work for, that's what you do. But the misfortune of one man is another man's opportunity.

“Mason played well when he got there. I have a lot of respect for Mason. Everything he did and what our team did. So now my job, I'm back healthy , is to be the backup. If something happens, If he goes down, be ready to go and continue to support him like I have been.”

Pickett said conversations with the coaching staff about his status and the quarterback position have been limited during his recovery from ankle surgery, with the focus remaining on rehabbing his ankle.

“It was tough,” Pickett said of the conversation with Tomlin. “At first, there wasn't really a lot of conversation. It was really a day-to-day, week-to-week thing as far as what was going on. If Mason hadn't played well, I I feel like I should have gone sooner than they wanted, and that's just the truth of the situation.

“He played well. They felt where I was in my recovery. They didn't want to push and try to get me dressed and had to be thrown in there. That's why I didn't accept. [up]”.

Pickett has participated in practice on a limited basis over the past two weeks, but has not taken any first-team reps. That, Tomlin said Monday, was why Pickett wasn't Rudolph's primary backup against Seattle.

“It came down to rep distribution and who was best prepared and positioned to help us win,” Tomlin said of the decision to make Pickett inactive. “And so, that’s the direction we’ve gone.”

Pickett confirmed that the team's lack of reps contributed to its lack of activity against Seattle.

“From coach’s perspective, that’s what they wanted, for me to get more reps,” Pickett said. “And they weren't comfortable with how I looked earlier in the week and where I was with my ankle doing that.”

Pickett also said he would like to have team reps before returning to the field, but he acknowledged that is difficult to do at this point in the season.

“Reps are limited, like you said, being off for four weeks, you want reps to get back into the swing of things,” Pickett said. “But where we are right now, it’s quite difficult to do that.”

When asked if he felt like he lost his starting job, Pickett expressed some frustration.

“Look, like I just said, it was one man's misfortune, another man's opportunity,” Pickett said. “He came in, he's playing well and that's why they're going to roll with him. So we'll see how it goes. I've got to be ready to go in case we have to, whatever it takes to get to the game. in the playoffs, it's all hands on deck, so I'll be ready to go if need be.”

Pickett declined to speculate on what being the No. 2 behind Rudolph for this crucial game meant for his future. A 2022 first-round pick, Pickett is under contract through 2025 and can remain under club control through 2026 with a fifth-year option. This decision is expected in May 2025.

“It’s been day by day, week by week,” Pickett said. “We’ll figure that out when the time comes.”