The Pittsburgh Steelers are heading into 2023 with Kenny Pickett at quarterback. The Steelers and most of their fans are extremely happy about that fact. It is only most because there is still a small minority of fans and insiders who were not sold on the former Pitt Panther with the way he closed the season. Pickett played well under the pressure of playoff-like games in December. The Steelers had to win to stay in contention and Pickett delivered victories in those games.
The Arthur Moats Experience With Deke Podcast | YouTube
Former Steelers LB Arthur Moats' podcast.
Terence Garvin, who played for the Steelers from 2013 to 2015 and appears regularly on the Arthur Moats Experience With Deke podcast is one of the very vocal minority that is encouraging the Steelers to move on if they get the chance at a better option:
“I’m huge on Anthony Richardson,” Garvin began. “I’m one of these people who drank the Kool-Aid. Didn’t nobody else see what I seen? He looks like Lamar [Jackson] mixed with Cam [Newton].”
Photo Credit: Stacy Revere/Getty Images
Anthony Richardson impressed scouts with his speed and accuracy at the 2023 NFL Combine.
The conversation initially surrounded the Baltimore Ravens potentially seeking a replacement from this season’s crop of rookie quarterbacks for the Lamar Jackson conundrum. Anthony Richardson is the least accomplished of the top four options, but after what may be the best combine performance ever for a quarterback, teams are overlooking his inconsistent play in the SEC with the Florida Gators:
“I don’t think any of us were surprised by Anthony Richardson being a great athlete,” Moats interjected.
“[If] he’s still around when Pittsburgh comes up, they should ask some questions,” Garvin retorted. “You sure you can’t run this offense?”
Eric “Deke” Deklaven and Arthur Moats were stunned by the suggestion of dumping Pickett for Richardson. Garvin has engaged in hyperbole on the show before, but even for him, this was out of left field. He was not bashing Pickett so much as drooling over Richardson’s gifts. Deklaven was quick to point out one of the former Florida Gators’ biggest flaws:
“Dude, he threw like 50 percent completion rate in college,” Deklaven responded.
“Man, we’ll work on it, a bigger body more athletic,” Garvin replied comparing Richardson to Malik Willis. “Did you not see him run? That’s everything I’m looking for, you know who he reminds me of? This dude in Buffalo, Josh Allen. Could you imagine that backfield with 6 foot 5 and the big Najee [Harris] next to it?”
The Matt Canada RPO offense in a perfect world would be very hard to stop with Richardson and Najee Harris, but the P in RPO would be the problem. The Canada offense is already under heavy scrutiny and the idea of putting in a quarterback who would be completely reliant on the embattled offensive coordinator’s play calls is not ideal. That alone would be a recipe for disaster:
“Listen, we got our quarterback for right now,” Moats said. “You can’t go back-to-back quarterbacks in the first round. I was part of that dysfunction out there. It’s bad for business. They [Arizona Cardinals] signed [Sam] Bradford, drafted [Josh] Rosen, and then the following year, went Kyler Murray. We don’t want to follow that model.”
Moats spent his last season in Arizona and was part of the quarterback carousel in 2018. He was placed on injured reserve just before the regular season, but had a front-row seat to watch the bizarre events unfold on offense in 2018 and the lead-up to the draft in 2019. The former Steelers and Bills linebacker never played a snap for the Cardinals, retiring in June of 2019, rather than participating in the perceived dysfunction of the organization.
“If this was last year, and the pick was up, we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” Garvin concluded. “We would be like, 'We got our guy.' If this [Richardson] was Malik, he would have been in Pittsburgh.”
Steelers' Backup Quarterback Solution Is Not As Simple As Extending Mitch Trubisky
Richardson is a project, and his ceiling may be sky-high. However, initially, he is not a pro-ready passer and needs at least a year to develop before seeing the field. Based on how the Steelers' season went in 2022, it is almost inconceivable that Richardson would have been prepared to step in during the New York Jets game for Mitch Trubisky.
Photo Credit: JORDAN SCHOFIELD/ Steeler Nation
Steelers Kenny Pickett and quarterback coach Mike Sullivan
If the Steelers did draft Richardson, would he sit behind Pickett? The fans gave the former Pitt quarterback a standing ovation in his first appearance in a preseason game and is wildly popular in Pittsburgh. The current Steelers quarterback is surprisingly mobile and is proficient at reading the field. The thought of giving up on Pickett after one season and the fans accepting it is at best far-fetched. The die is cast in Pittsburgh, in Kenny Pickett we trust.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Is Garvin way off base with this take? Please comment below or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.
