LATROBE, Pa. (AP) — Kenny Pickett is an NFL veteran now. The proof is in the luggage the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback packed for his second training camp at Saint Vincent College.
Crammed in with all the usual bevy of creature comforts needed for three-plus weeks in somewhat cramped quarters was a piece of equipment Pickett forgot last summer: a foot massager.
“My feet kill me in cleats every day,” Pickett explained with a laugh Wednesday just outside Rooney Hall. “That (massager) was probably the big piece that I brought this (time).”
Pickett spoke with the ease of someone who knows where they stand, a marked departure from his indoctrination into the NFL last summer when he walked onto Chuck Noll field buried — at least briefly — on the depth chart behind Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph.
This time around there will be no parsing of his snap counts during practice. No breaking down of every throw of every drill. No doing everything in his power to stay out of the spotlight while he learned on the job.
There also will be no debate over whether he’s ready to handle the pressure of being the face of an NFL franchise whose every season is judged — fairly or unfairly — on whether it ends with a downtown parade in early February.
Those days are over. They officially ended late last season, when the rapidly maturing Pickett helped the Steelers win seven of their last nine, a stretch that included the rookie engineering consecutive last-minute, winning touchdown drives to keep Pittsburgh in the playoff mix until the waning seconds of Week 18.
It wasn't enough for the Steelers to reach the postseason. It was enough, however, to quell any lingering concerns the team might have had on whether Pickett is The Guy.
Head coach Mike Tomlin, who has long held that the biggest leap an NFL player makes in their career is between their rookie year and their second season, expects Pickett “kill it.”
Asked to define what exactly that means, Tomlin shrugged.
“He needs to be what we need him to be,” he said. “I know that he’s preparing with that mindset. And I like his approach and his and his demeanor in that regard.”
Pickett spent the brief break between spring drills and the start of camp getting married and honeymooning in Puerto Rico when he wasn't burying himself in the small film room in the Steelers facility trying to cull whatever lessons he could from a rookie season in which his pedestrian numbers — seven touchdowns and nine interceptions in 13 games — belied a player who rarely made the same mistake twice.
He's not going to post eye-popping stats like most of his brethren in a loaded AFC. The Steelers aren't built that way. They figure to continue to rely heavily on a defense that includes Pro Bowlers at all three levels, from defensive lineman Cam Heyward to edge rushers T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith to safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.
While Tomlin allowed he wants the offense to be more explosive, the Steelers have put together a roster that seems intent on being the physical “yin” to the high-powered “yang” found in places like Kansas City and Buffalo.
They signed Eagles veteran guard Isaac Seumalo in free agency and selected left tackle Broderick Jones and tight end Darnell Washington in the three rounds of the draft with an eye toward controlling the ball, the line of scrimmage and ultimately the pace of the game.
“You can get expectations of numbers and stuff like that,” Pickett said. “I just want to go out there and win. So whatever that takes, whatever those numbers look like, that’s all I’m focused on.”
Not having to worry about how many times he's going to work with the starters helps. Pickett said and did all the right things last summer while biding his time behind Trubisky before eventually taking over at halftime of what became a Week 4 loss to the New York Jets.
He improved steadily over the final two months, looking increasingly comfortable in his own skin. The Steelers saw enough progress to retain embattled offensive coordinator Matt Canada for a third season and spending a chunk of the offseason investing heavily in the offensive line, signing veteran guard Isaac Seumalo and drafting massive Georgia tackle Broderick Jones in the first round.
Otherwise, most of the group that played competent if not exactly adrenaline-fueled football in 2022 is back. So too, the Steelers hope, are the good vibes their young quarterback generated over a promising final two months.
“Nothing that we did last year has any effect on this season or give us any kind of leg up on anybody," Pickett said. “But I think being able to play with guys for a year, being in a system for a year, and having an understanding of how each guy plays, I think there’s some kind of momentum there.”
NOTES: Tomlin said all players passed Wednesday's mandatory conditional test and no one will begin the season on the Physically Unable to Perform list. ... Rookie CB Joey Porter Jr. arrived early Wednesday, less than 24 hours after signing his contract. ... Jones said he arrived in Pittsburgh late Tuesday and took an Uber to camp, paying around $50 for a drive of well over an hour.
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