The Pittsburgh Steelers are not expecting to make a blockbuster trade for a quarterback, team president Art Rooney II told Andrew Stockey of WTAE. This came a day after Rooney said he would not close the door on a trade for a quarterback, but he clarified those comments on Wednesday.
“The question I was asked was would I consider anything like that, and I know, as we sit here today, we don’t want to close the door on anything, but I’d probably put it in the unlikely category,” Rooney said. “Look, we like to look at any opportunity we think can make us better, so that’s why I don’t close the door on anything. But I don’t want to create a lot of speculation out there that we’re going out to make some blockbuster trade at the QB spot. I don’t. I’d put it in the unlikely category.”
n an interview with Bob Pomepeani of KDKA-TV on Tuesday, Rooney said that the team was unprepared to rule out any method of acquiring another quarterback to compete with incumbent starter Kenny Pickett.
The most obvious quarterback on the trade market is Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears. The Bears’ first-round pick in 2021, Fields has been a three-year starter and improved every season. But now the Bears have the No. 1 overall pick and could have their sights set on Caleb Williams of USC or Drake Maye of UNC. That could result in Fields landing on the trade market.
“As we sit here in early February, we’re not closing the door on anything,” Rooney said when asked about a potential for a trade. “We have a lot of evaluations to go through. We’ll go through all the options and do what we need to do to be better this coming season.”
The Steelers have committed to giving Pickett another shot as the team’s starting quarterback, but Rooney did say that they need Pickett to perform at a higher level in 2024.
“The next step, number one, would look like more points, week in and week out,” Rooney said. “Just being a more effective offense, continuing to do some of the things we were able to do this year in terms of ball control, being able to run effectively, but then add on top of that, scoring more touchdowns.”
Regardless, it seems the team will not make some blockbuster trade as it stands here right now, which bodes well for Pickett. They will try to bring Mason Rudolph back, but if not, they might have to look elsewhere.