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Kenny Pickett reminds analyst of Jalen Hurts in one area

Pittsburgh Steelers QB Kenny Pickett Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Kenny Pickett reminds analyst of Jalen Hurts in this one area

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 5/25/23

While Jalen Hurts had a fine debut season as the Philadelphia Eagles starting quarterback in 2021, it wasn’t until his second season starting that he really blossomed into a Pro Bowl-caliber signal caller.

NFL Network analyst Adam Rank believes the same could happen for Kenny Pickett, who Rank believes is most likely to make a Hurts-like jump from Year 1 to Year 2 as the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback.

“At the end of last season, [he] was one of the better quarterbacks,” Rank said, via Steeler Nation. “Over the last eight games, he went 6-2 but the most important thing to me was that he started to limit the mistakes. [He] did not throw any interceptions. His touchdown-to-interception ratio was way better (and) they were winning games. … I think Kenny Pickett and this Steelers team is going to be ready to make a little bit of a run this year.”

From 2021 to 2022, Hurts’ completion percentage jumped from 61.3 to 66.5, his touchdown percentage rose from 3.7 to 4.8, his interception percentage dropped from 2.1 to 1.3 and his passer rating soared from 87.2 to 101.5. He accounted for 533 more yards of total offense and scored nine more touchdowns in 2022-23 while finishing runner-up in MVP voting.

While those are lofty expectations for Pickett to live up to, the potential for him to see similar improvement is there.

Big year 2⃣ for Kenny Pickett? pic.twitter.com/LzWuHjMTdG
— NFL Total Access (@NFLTotalAccess) May 23, 2023

The Steelers have beefed up Pickett’s protection by selecting Georgia's Broderick Jones with the No. 13 overall pick in April's draft and signing free agent guards Isaac Seumalo (from the Eagles) and Nate Herbig (from the Jets). They also added two new weapons for him to target in veteran receiver Allen Robinson and rookie tight end Darnell Washington.

Robinson is just two seasons removed back-to-back seasons with 98 or more receptions and 1,100 or more yards. Though he has been banged up the last two years, he will likely see a higher volume of targets in the fall while splitting time with Dionte Johnson (who is a year removed from a 100-catch season himself) and George Pickens (who contributed 52 receptions and 801 yards as a rookie).

Washington, a highly athletic pass catcher who many considered to be the steal of the draft after he fell to Round 4, will form a strong 1-2 punch at tight end with Pat Friermuth, who has posted a combined 123 receptions, 1,229 yards and nine touchdowns over the last two years.

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