Kenny Pickett’s NFL career has been nothing short of whirlwind so far. From being a first-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers, to being traded to the Philadelphia Eagles and winning a Super Bowl as the backup, he has now been traded once again to the Cleveland Browns.
For Pickett, he’s just excited to have a chance to compete for a starting job once again.
“I’m excited to get back into it,” Pickett said of returning to the AFC North via the Browns’ YouTube. “I just think it’s a great opportunity to go compete again. That’s really all you can ask for. That’s what I was told coming in here, I’d have an opportunity to compete again, so I’m very excited for that.”
When Pickett was traded to the Eagles, it was quite clear that he would be biding his time as a backup. Fortunately for him, he got to start a game late in the season while Jalen Hurts dealt with an injury, and he played pretty extensively in one other game.
“The two games I got in there, I had some pretty good tape through those two games,” Pickett said when asked if he was surprised that he was traded once again. “I did not know that it could have been Cleveland. That was a bit of a surprise based on the team that they were telling me early on in the process. But I’m extremely happy to be here.”
There is no certainty that Pickett will be the starter in Cleveland, but he’s basically the only option right now. Coincidentally, the quarterback that marked the beginning of the end of his time with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Russell Wilson, is set to visit with the Browns today. He may even be in the building right now.
“That’s fine with me,” Pickett said. “As long as I have a chance to compete. That’s all you can ask for. So having that opportunity is awesome as a player, so I’m looking forward to working with whoever comes in the building.”
This raises at least some questions about Pickett’s exit from Pittsburgh. He was the starter for nearly two full seasons, but lost his starting job to Mason Rudolph while he was out injured. Once Wilson was brought in, Pickett was traded just a few days later. Reports later surfaced that he felt misled about the nature of the competition.
I think we all saw how the competition played out between Wilson and Justin Fields last year. Even with Wilson out injured for most of training camp and the first several weeks of the regular season, he replaced Fields in the starting lineup at the first opportunity once he was healthy. This is reading between the lines a bit, but it seems like Pickett is okay with competing for the starting job as long as he feels like he has a chance to compete.
Pickett was specifically asked about the nature of his trade away from the Steelers, but declined to answer the question and wanted to leave that chapter in the past.
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