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The Pittsburgh Steelers are leaving the door open on a potential offseason QB trade, according to team president Art Rooney II. The offense experienced a number of issues in 2023, many of which revolved around the position.
The Steelers saw a carousel of passers line up in the backfield last season due to both injury and inconsistent play. Kenny Pickett began the year as the starter, but he’d be one of three players to take snaps under center.
The struggles were season-long for the offense, which ranked as one of the NFL’s worst in terms of scoring. Pittsburgh was outgained in each of its first 10 games, leading to the midseason firing of offensive coordinator Matt Canada.
The scenes at Acrisure Stadium were ugly and fans weren’t happy!
Things went from bad to worse when Pickett went down with injury, forcing Mitchell Trubisky into the starting lineup.
With Trubisky at the helm, the Steelers were winless, failing to eclipse 200 passing yards in either of his two starts. The struggles led to his being replaced by Mason Rudolph.
Rudolph went 3-0 to end the regular season and somehow get the team into the playoffs. A subpar postseason performance in Buffalo effectively ended the year, though.
Now, questions remain.
Is there suddenly a battle in the QB room? Rudolph looked the most consistent of the trio last year despite beginning the season as third string on the depth chart.
Will Pittsburgh stick with their first-round draft pick in Pickett? What happens to Trubisky?
That uncertainty on only grew following Art Rooney II’s recent comments on the quarterback situation.
BREAKING: Steelers President Art Rooney II tells the legend @kdpomp that the Steelers are NOT closing the door on a quarterback trade. (i.e. Justin Fields) pic.twitter.com/5Rx8lphYT0
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) February 7, 2024
“As we sit here early February, we’re not closing the door on anything,” Rooney responded when asked about the possibility of adding a new passer to the roster.
“We have a lot of evaluations to go through and we’ll go through all the options and do what we need to do to be better this coming season.”
There are a few different options who could be on the market next year. Justin Fields’ time in Chicago could be running out with the Bears expected to draft Caleb Williams with the No. 1 pick.
Kirk Cousins is another name that’s been linked to the Steelers.
Pittsburgh is only in Year 2 with Kenny Pickett, but many are already wavering on the idea that he’s the future. We’ll see if the Steelers continue to have faith or if they decide to go in a new direction.