Pat McAfee ‘Pumped’ By Steelers Pick of Pitt QB Kenny Pickett

The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett with the No. 20 pick of the first round of the NFL Draft Thursday night.

Pat McAfee, who played football at nearby Plum high school and then punter at West Virginia in College and eight seasons in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts. On his show the Pat McAfee Show said that he was “pumped” with the pick by the Steelers.

“After you see Kenny Pickett to that draft [pick], I’m pumped for him,” McAfee said. “I am fucking incredibly pumped for him and the Pittsburgh Steelers.”

Pickett played the best collegiate season of his career last year, throwing for 4,319 yards, 42 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. His performance throughout the season lead Pitt to their first ever ACC Championship and an appearance in the Peach Bowl. He also won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and earned a spot as a Heisman finalist in New York City for his efforts last season.

McAfee stated that the Steelers know so much about Pickett because of how long he spent in and around the same facilities at Pitt. That time together between each team, he called a big benefit to the Steelers and helped them compared to other teams, who “only got to have dinner with Kenny.”

“I guess that’s the benefit of going to the University of Pittsburgh, not that there’s many others,” McAfee, the former Mountaineer said. “Would just like that to be known.”

McAfee also said that it would’ve been “bad news for Kenny” had the Steelers gone with a quarterback, but instead of Pickett, they chose Liberty’s Malik Willis or Ole Miss’ Matt Corrall.

“As I’m watching the draft watch-along there, [Pitt head coach Pat] Narduzzi’s there, Kenny Pickett’s there, his family’s there, his lady’s there. If the Steelers draft somebody outside of that building or that family, I think there’s an immediate, ‘Well, what the fuck is wrong with this guy.’ Instead everything else it appears that they were meeting with everybody else was just to see if they were a baseline alongside Kenny Pickett.”

McAfee noted how important newly signed quarterback Mitch Trubisky will be important for the development of Pickett as a signal caller for the Steelers in the future.

Tone Digs, a co-commentator on the Pat McAfee show, commented on how he does not know more than Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin and general manager Kevin Colbert and trusts in their vision to take Pickett in the first round.

“I’m very, very ecstatic,” Digs said. “The cherry on top is Mason Rudolph should be cut any day soon.”