Mark Madden's Hot Take: Kenny Pickett failed and got what he deserved

Kenny Pickett failed. That’s his story.

He got lied to by Mike Tomlin, but that’s not an exclusive club. Pickett was well-served by a previous Tomlin fib, one that fleeced Mitch Trubisky.

In 2022, Tomlin told Trubisky he’d be the starting quarterback at least through Week 9, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ bye that season. Pickett was inserted at halftime of Week 4.

It was never going to be a competition between Pickett and Russell Wilson. Anybody believing that for one second is a fool. Pickett didn’t, especially when Tomlin told him Wilson would be getting the initial reps with the first team.

Pickett was betrayed by his teammates, who openly recruited Wilson to join the Steelers. That had to be a bitter pill.

Pickett’s fragile ego double-crossed him more than his tiny hands. He lacked the cachet to pull stunts like refusing to dress Week 17 at Seattle because he wasn’t starting, or glumly say he learned nothing by watching from the sidelines.

Ex-offensive coordinator Matt Canada did Pickett no favors by deploying a scheme that was universally panned. But Pickett didn’t depart too long after Canada, so the Steelers obviously found both men to be problematic.

But these are all sidebars.

The real story is that Pickett failed.

Steelers trade Pickett:

• Tim Benz: Kenny Pickett trade shows Steelers' trust in Russell Wilson ... and why we should never trust what they say
• Steelers fans shocked, pleasantly surprised by Kenny Pickett trade
• From a hero's welcome to a one-way ticket out of town, Kenny Pickett era brief for Steelers
• Steelers trade quarterback Kenny Pickett to Eagles

Pickett came into pro football at 24, supposedly NFL-ready, and almost never impressed in his 24 career starts.

Pickett put together the occasional late drive, but perhaps that was coincidence more than clutch.

Pickett’s stooges cite his won-lost record. But the Steelers tiptoed to a lot of victories despite Pickett’s meager stats.

Anyway, he was only 14-10. That’s meh. Pickett’s Steelers never won the AFC North and only surged to a playoff berth last season when Pickett got replaced. Winning only matters if you win enough.

Pickett has a popgun arm. His pocket awareness is sketchy and often sees him escape into trouble, creating sacks or pressure for the opposition. He’s got the touch of a blacksmith. Pickett shows little sign of being an effective NFL starter.

Pickett threw 13 touchdown passes in 25 games. He only topped 300 yards passing once, only threw more than one touchdown once. He threw zero touchdowns in a game 13 times. He’s got the worst touchdowns per passing attempts ratio for any NFL quarterback ever with more than 500 throws: 1.82%. His numbers are bad beyond explanation.

Now his hubris has placed him in a situation where he’s even less likely to play and there’s no job to be inherited. Pickett is 10 years younger than Wilson but two months older than Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts.

If you separate Pickett from the surrounding drama, there’s only one story: Pickett failed. That can’t be refuted.

Pickett also got what he deserved. That can’t be refuted, either.