Kenny Pickett the SMG breakdown

[SteelerOfDeVille]

I would welcome your crowing like a lunatic brother.

I will try to beat you to the punch and start a thread giving you props.

As always. We should ALL want the Steelers to be right regardless our gut feelings.

People criticize some of us as blind "Steelers can do no wrong" homers.

Everybody here disagrees at times.

True fans just want to be wrong when they are in doubt.

I agree... I want them to be successful.

MY struggle is when the team makes a mistake by passing on someone that *I* wanted - or cuts a guy with potential (I'm still salty about Quncy Roche, who could be a good backup)

But, most often it's "why didn't you take day 1-2 Player X

[brothervad]

But, ceiling doesn't mean that you WILL reach it. IMO, a ceiling, you typically don't reach it. That's why it's a ceiling - it's as high as YOU could possibly be given the space YOU are in. Personally, I think they need a 3rd category: Ceiling, Floor and Most Likely Outcome.

For Willis:
Floor: Quincy Carter, Cowboys - owner/coach keeps trying, but no success
Ceiling: Steve McNair - small school kid grows his passing knowledge and becomes a guy capable of winning with arm AND feet
Most Likely: RG3 (pre-injury) - will make a lot of highlight plays and have stretches where he's good, but will also be a head scratcher (I've called him RG4... lol)

SOD,

What is really interesting about the Ceiling comparison...is that Steve McNair needed to sit the pine for about 3 seasons becoming the Steve McNair he became. There was a time when the QB position actually required a time on the bench to learn the game. Yes it was long, long ago in a galaxy far away, but it indicates many changes in that position over the 20-25 years.

I re-read Tom Brady's bio prior to his draft, and also read some of his comments leading up to the draft...it's interesting how meh he was on that day 3 (or was it day 2 back in those days?). Now I am not comparing KP to TB in any way, shape or form, but what I am saying the head thing and the competitive thing and the clutch thing and the dedication thing supersede all of the raw talent ceiling.

--Poor build
--Skinny
--Lacks great physical stature and strength
--Lacks mobility and ability to avoid the rush
--Lacks a really strong arm
--Can’t drive the ball downfield
--Does not throw a really tight spiral
--System-type player who can get exposed if forced to ad lib
--Gets knocked down easily

So Shawn's analysis is fair...I do think I have a bias, so I probably root with my heart (I agree with Felt about KP's desire/fiery competitiveness and ability to make reads). I also have at times take Shawn's Buckeye assessments with a grain of salt for similar reasons (sorry Shawn. ).

I will say this...a lot of the he did it in Year 5 stuff is a bit unfair...if you haven't followed Pitt football. Coach Whipple (who has a Big Ben connection) coached him for two seasons...prior to that it was OC du jour.

Last year he was injured for a good part of the season which led him to stay for a year 5. I think it was pretty telling how a good college QB coach/OC exponentially enabled KP's abilities.

And there lies the rub...Canada/Mike Sullivan be the QB whisperer or not?

Time will tell?

Brothervad

[Steel Maniac]

The Matt Canada/Sullivan part scares me. Who says these guys know what their doing in QB development? Nothing we saw last year makes me think Canada is on that caliber. Granted, Ben was a qb in decline mode so there is that. But to just trust Canada as a QB developer? I think it’s asking a lot.

[Captain Lemming]

I agree... I want them to be successful.

MY struggle is when the team makes a mistake by passing on someone that *I* wanted - or cuts a guy with potential (I'm still salty about Quncy Roche, who could be a good backup)

But, most often it's "why didn't you take day 1-2 Player X

I agree. With Roche specifically too.

I will admit ONE TIME I rooted for the team to be shown wrong. One time I actually rooted for the Pats.

As those of you here at the time know, I was 100 percent on Harrisons side with that team conflict and was angry at how I felt he was disrespected.

I wanted Deebo to win the SB and ball out doing it.

I confess my inner betrayal.
I'm not proud of it. Forgive me please. I repent of my sins.

[hawaiiansteel]

The amount of love Willis had before the draft was head scratching. Maybe he really has that IT factor but it always felt like he had a good agent/team around him that helped push him on ESPN.

I never understood it either and was pretty consistent with my posts saying so.

I watched Willis play in 3 games last season, and after each one I had no idea why he was being touted as a high draft choice.

[feltdizz]

The Matt Canada/Sullivan part scares me. Who says these guys know what their doing in QB development? Nothing we saw last year makes me think Canada is on that caliber. Granted, Ben was a qb in decline mode so there is that. But to just trust Canada as a QB developer? I think it’s asking a lot.

I’m willing to give Canada this year with younger legs at QB before writing him off.

[Captain Lemming]

I never understood it either and was pretty consistent with my posts saying so.

I watched Willis play in 3 games last season, and after each one I had no idea why he was being touted as a high draft choice.

I third on this.
Bottom line:

We all agreed with the REAL experts. There was no basis for the love pseudo-experts gave him.

Funny thing is I'd say MOST here ACCURATLY saw the class as trash.

Is Pickett the one good QB? At Least one team liked him, maybe others.

Time will tell.

[Steel Maniac]

I’m willing to give Canada this year with younger legs at QB before writing him off.

I"m not writing him off per say. I'm just saying that a year and a half ago he was an unknown to most; now we are trusting him not only to be a OC but to also develop our franchise QB? I'm not sure he's a legit OC let alone a QB developer.

[feltdizz]

I"m not writing him off per say. I'm just saying that a year and a half ago he was an unknown to most; now we are trusting him not only to be a OC but to also develop our franchise QB? I'm not sure he's a legit OC let alone a QB developer.

He was well known by Pitt Panther fans. His offense was a beast and they beat Clemson in Death Valley the year they won the National Title.

That was a lifetime ago tho, no idea if the game bas passed him by. Really need to see this offense with a QB who can break the pocket and make things happen.

[WindyCitySteel]

I third on this.
Bottom line:

We all agreed with the REAL experts. There was no basis for the love pseudo-experts gave him.

Funny thing is I'd say MOST here ACCURATLY saw the class as trash.

Is Pickett the one good QB? At Least one team liked him, maybe others.

Time will tell.

If time will tell, then we don't accurately know anything yet.

Best chance of succeeding IMO are Pickett, Corral, and Ridder, who I think could surprise people like Dak did in a good system.

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

I think that this is the ultimate "we have to take the team's analysis" situation. I always say that the team goes into this with more info than we have but in this case it is significantly more than ever.

-The team scouted each QB exhaustively
-The GM and HC know him very well personally
-The HC and GM have had the chance to "sneak" into practices to actually watch him work with his teammates
-The OC actually recruited him in high school
-His former OC and QB coach is a former Steeler coach

I say all this as someone who did not want this pick. I did not want a QB this draft because I did not think there wasa franchise QB in this draft, but I will admit that my scouting career, and my lack of watching college football, is suspect enough that I can defer to others on this move.

[Ghost]

Are people really that untrusting of the Steelers coaches, scouts, and front office? They literally had the choice of every QB in the entire draft and ran to the podium with KPs name. Hell, they were looking to move up they were so sure about this kid. If he's the bust some think he might be; then the Steelers should completely reevaluate how they judge QB talent. It's indictment on them more than KP.

[crushedspirit]

I get why they picked him, and in my opinion, he is the most ready in the class. Problem for me is I don't ever see him as anything more than a game manager, and just does not have the upside that was evident with guys like Allen and Mahomes, despite their question marks. He does not posses the athletic abilities those guys showed in college, so again, I fail to see the amount of growth that can come from someone who looks like he is limited. I like his work over the middle of the field, but I don't like what I saw when throwing outside the numbers. I like that he has a knack for starting strong, but I don't know who he is when in pressure situations. He tore a bad Miami D up, but threw a horrible INT to end the game. He showed many times over that he won't stand tall in the pocket with pressure around him, instead opting to take off at the first hint of trouble. His fumbling is going to be a problem in the NFL if he can't clean that up.

He is someone I could see a team taking who has most of the pieces in place and want a game manager on a rookie contract to guide the ship in the NFC, but not a team that is in a lower tier in the AFC going up against much better QBs. The other major question for me is who can develop him? Nobody on the staff is a proven commodity for when it comes to a young QB, so only time will tell how it all works out.

[Steel Maniac]

Are people really that untrusting of the Steelers coaches, scouts, and front office? They literally had the choice of every QB in the entire draft and ran to the podium with KPs name. Hell, they were looking to move up they were so sure about this kid. If he's the bust some think he might be; then the Steelers should completely reevaluate how they judge QB talent. It's indictment on them more than KP.

Solid points.

[hawaiiansteel]

Are people really that untrusting of the Steelers coaches, scouts, and front office? They literally had the choice of every QB in the entire draft and ran to the podium with KPs name. Hell, they were looking to move up they were so sure about this kid. If he's the bust some think he might be; then the Steelers should completely reevaluate how they judge QB talent. It's indictment on them more than KP.

yup, yet we still have posters here questioning our attempt to find a new franchise QB.