PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett left the team’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday and will not return after taking a hit early in the third quarter and suffering a concussion.
Pickett took a big hit from blitzing Tampa Bay linebacker Devin White while throwing a pass to Diontae Johnson in the third quarter. White hit Pickett hard in the chest as he was releasing the ball, and Pickett hit the back of his head on the grass when he went to the ground.
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After leaving the field under his own power, Pickett was briefly examined in the medical tent on the Pittsburgh sideline before being taken the home locker room. The Steelers announced that Pickett was questionable to return to the game before later downgrading him to out.
The pass to Johnson was complete, but the play was wiped out because of a holding penalty on Steelers left guard Kevin Dotson. Mitch Trubisky replaced Pickett with the Steelers leading 13-12 in the third quarter.
Before leaving the game, Pickett was 11 of 18 for 67 yards. He threw his first career touchdown pass to Najee Harris in the first quarter. Pickett was sacked once and had two scrambles for 16 yards.