Steelers Daily News & Links: Russell Wilson Trade Odds, Kenny Pickett Best Fit?

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? Bryan DeArdo of CBS Sports thinks Kenny Pickett is the best option at quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

“Pickett started his career with an offensive coordinator who was relieved of his duties during the 2023 season. It’s no coincidence that Pickett’s best game last season occurred immediately following the OC shakeup. Pickett continued to play well the following week before an injury ultimately ended his season,” DeArdo wrote. “Injuries have also hindered Pickett’s development. He missed two games his rookie season after entering the league’s concussion protocol. An ankle injury last season contributed to Pickett’s season ending after 12 games.

“Offensive coordinator and injury issues have hurt Pickett’s growth, but the Steelers possibly trying to turn him into a game manager has, too. Pickett threw a lot of picks early on as a rookie, and substantially improved in that area shortly thereafter. But his production also decreased; he’s had just one game with multiple touchdown passes and his only 300-yard passing performance occurred during his first career start in Buffalo.

“Part of new OC Arthur Smith’s task is to help Pickett find the balance between playmaker and game manager. Pickett has the ability to be a playmaker; he’s done that on occasion for the Steelers and routinely did so during his final year at Pitt. Smith has to help him rediscover that magic. At the same time, Smith also has to help Pickett understand his limitations when it comes to taking risks both as a passer and a runner. I’m confident that Smith can do both.”

? Russell Wilson’s odds of getting traded to the Steelers started at +1400. It’s now at -110.

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? Ari Meirov of the 33rd Team thinks Najee Harris is the second-most difficult fifth-year option decision in the NFL. Justin Fields came in at No. 1.

“Najee Harris has rushed for more than 1,000 yards in all three years with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but that likely has more to do with the amount of carries he gets.

“He’s averaged a mere 3.9 yards per carry in his career. The running back market has been a struggle in recent years, and the $6.66 million it would take to pick up his option would make him one of the 10 highest-paid backs in the NFL,” Meirov wrote.

? Josh Edwards of CBS Sports has the Steelers trading up four spots with the Seattle Seahawks to select Oregon State offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga at 16th overall in his mock draft.

“Pittsburgh can ill afford to wait until its first pick to see if an offensive tackle is still available, especially with Cincinnati and Los Angeles ahead of Mike Tomlin’s team. The Steelers move up to take Taliese Fuaga, who should be an impactful bookend opposite Broderick Jones for many years,” Edwards wrote.

? The Steelers had the second-fewest offensive penalty yards (266) in the 2023 regular season, according to Warren Sharp of Sharp Football. Only the Cincinnati Bengals (255) had fewer offensive penalty yards than the Steelers. The Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs led the league with 486 offensive penalty yards.

? Two juveniles have been charged with crimes connected to the shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl rally, authorities said Friday.

? Brooke Pryor of ESPN isn’t sure if Mason Rudolph will want to return to the Steelers after past sham competitions.

“At this point, I think it’s kind of up in the air,” Pryor said recently on the Two on OSU podcast.

“I’m interested to see if Mason wants an opportunity to prove himself somewhere else because of the roller coaster that he has been on throughout his career in Pittsburgh when there was essentially an open quarterback competition between Pickett and Trubisky, and Rudolph was supposed to be in the mix.

“But as we know, it was kind of, I hate to say, a sham competition, but it was pretty much known the whole time that it was going to be (Mitch) Trubisky, (Kenny) Pickett, and then Rudolph.”

? Former Steelers quarterback and Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw once had a daytime talk show. It was short-lived due to low ratings, however.

? Happy Birthday to former Steelers inside linebacker Levon Kirkland, born on February 17, 1969 in Lamar, South Carolina.

Kirkland, a 1991 consensus All-American and three-time All-ACC selection, was an imposing force for the Clemson Tigers in the early 90s. Selected by Pittsburgh in the second round of the 1992 NFL Draft, Kirkland played the first nine years of his career with the Steelers. He ended his career with 1,026 total tackles, 19.5 sacks, 16 forced fumbles and eleven interceptions. Kirkland earned a pair of Pro Bowl nods and a first-team All-Pro selection.

? The Steelers History account on X posted a clip of Jerome Bettis running over Brian Urlacher in the snow for a touchdown back in 2005. It was one of Bettis’ most iconic plays of his Hall of Fame career.  Bettis’ celebrated his 52nd birthday on Friday.

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