Update: The Pittsburgh Steelers have ruled Kenny Pickett out for the remainder of the game with a concussion.
Pittsburgh Steelers rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett made his second NFL start Sunday against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The first-round pick also threw his first career regular-season touchdown to help a struggling Steelers team to an early lead.
Unfortunately, Pickett exited said game about midway through the third quarter after taking a big hit. He was seen in the medical tent before ultimately heading to the locker room. Pickett was replaced by a quarterback in Mitch Trubisky who was benched during a Week 4 loss to the New York Jets.
As you can see, Pickett’s head hit the turf. It did not look great. The fact that he headed to the locker room after being evaluated in the medical tent on the sideline also can’t be seen as good.
- Kenny Pickett stats (Week 6): 11-of-18 passing, 67 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT, 87.0 QB rating
Pittsburgh was leading 13-12 when Pickett went down as the team looks to avoid its first 1-5 start since all the way back in 1988.
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Status of Pittsburgh Steelers QB Kenny Pickett
Pittsburgh has not provided an official update outside of announcing that Trubisky has taken over under center. An update on the rookie’s status should come soon.
As for the injury itself, the NFL’s new concussion protocols make it even more likely that Pickett will not return for this game. The league changed its protocols following the entire Tua Tagovailoa with the Miami Dolphins.
The Steelers are in the midst of a lost season. They want Pickett to get as many reps as possible. It’s not great that he had to exit Sunday’s game before three quarters were even in the books.
We’ll have further updates as they become available.