Passing on Kenny Pickett could be 1983 all over again for the Steelers
Chances are slim, but some mock drafts — like one of Pro Football Network‘s latest — project Kenny Pickett to still be on the board for the Indianapolis Colts to select at No. 47.
Let’s pretend for a minute that Pickett falls.
The Steelers would be crazy not to take him, right?
This season, Pickett put his name out there with his stellar play and broke Pitt legend Dan Marino’s all-time record for passing touchdowns with 81. Oh, and he was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.
Through 13 games in 2021, Pickett completed 67.2-percent of his passes for 4,319 yards, 42 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Overall, Pickett accumulated 12,303 passing yards and 81 passing touchdowns in his five seasons; all NCAA football players were granted an extra year following the 2020 season.
Bringing in Pickett makes sense for the Steelers, considering he played his home games at Heinz Field and they’re familiar with his body of work. But given that the Steelers will be picking in the middle of the first round, they will have to trade up to get him.
Revisiting the 1983 draft
Every team has drafts or draft selections they wish they could do over, but perhaps none as badly as the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1983. Their need for a quarterback was abundantly clear. Terry Bradshaw, on the downside of his career, played the entire strike-shortened 1982 season with a torn muscle and tendons in his elbow, which he had surgery to repair in the offseason.
Yet with quarterback Dan Marino still on the draft board at No. 21, the Steelers selected defensive tackle Gabe Rivera, who played in just one game before an alcohol-related car wreck left him paralyzed.
Fresh off elbow surgery, Bradshaw played just one game in 1983 and then aggravated his injury. He retired that offseason.
Meanwhile, Marino went to the Dolphins with the No. 27 pick. He made nine starts as a rookie, going 7-2. He threw for over 2,000 yards, 20 touchdowns and six interceptions. The following season, he set the single-season passing yardage record with 5,084, a record since broken. Marino finished his 17-year career with the Dolphins with 61,361 yards and 420 touchdowns through the air.
No one knows whether Pickett has a Marino-like career ahead of him, but if Pickett is still around at No. 20, the Steelers would be wise to grab him.
Otherwise, it could be 1983 all over again.
