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Unlike a year ago, when offensive coordinator Matt Canada unveiled the offense in manageable bits and pieces in an effort not to overwhelm Pickett, the Steelers have already installed everything in the playbook. The Steelers spent the offseason beefing things up around Pickett, trading for veteran wide receiver Allen Robinson, drafting left tackle Broderick Jones in the first round and grabbing massive 6-foot-8 tight end Darnell Washington in the third. His steady play down the stretch in 2022 as Pittsburgh won seven of its last nine to finish 9-8 - particularly engineering consecutive last-minute wins over Las Vegas and Baltimore - showed Pickett has the potential to thrive in the NFL. I think I just want to step up when I feel like I need to step up.” “I just feel like it’s kind of like a natural transition,” Pickett said. That includes being more vocal and more visible both on and off the field. This is Pickett’s offense until further notice and the player who was dutifully reticent until he was handed the keys at halftime of a Week 4 loss to the New York Jets is making a point to check every box. While Trubisky is still around after signing a contract extension last month, he’s now firmly in the role of mentor/veteran backup. The dynamic on the practice field this spring is markedly different than in 2022 when Pickett hung with the third team while Mitch Trubisky got the reps with the starters. But that’s something that’s part of that next step that we’re hoping to see him make.” “And you know, it’s still early, it’s spring, we’re here in shorts and just helmets. “It’s been pleasing to us to see the improvement he has made in those areas,” Sullivan said. That includes stepping up rather than escaping when the pass rush is bearing down, which lets him still look downfield rather than look away while trying to locate an escape route. While Pickett found a way to make things happen when extending plays - his deft scramble to his left to buy time to throw the game-winning touchdown against Baltimore in Week 17 is the best example - he’s trying to master the “subtle nuances” of throwing from the pocket as quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan put it. “Just little things (like that),” Pickett said. The images from the camera can be a little bumpy at times - call it the byproduct of trying to navigate a sea of 300-pound offensive and defensive men - but it does help Pickett drill down on the details he knows he needs to perfect if he wants to make the leap Tomlin expects all second-year players to make regardless of their role.įor Pickett, that means watching helmet cam footage (as jumbly as it may be) to figure out where his eyes go on a given play, starting when he gets to the line of scrimmage and ending with wherever he decides to throw the ball.