Kenny Pickett addresses hand size concerns following NFL Draft
Former Pittsburgh Panthers quarterback Kenny Pickett was the first and only quarterback taken in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, even with concerns about his hand size. The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Pickett with the No. 20 overall pick.
At his introductory press conference with the Steelers, Pickett was asked about those who criticized him due to his hand size. In the end, he didn’t have much to say and is happy to be playing in Pittsburgh.
“Not much, really,” Pickett said when asked what he has to say about the critics about his hand size. “I mean it’s kind of not hat big of a deal, obviously. But just happy to be a Steeler, honestly.”
Pickett was one of the most experienced starting quarterbacks in the 2022 draft class, as his collegiate career began in 2017. In his five-year career at Pitt, Pickett completed 62.4% of his passes for 12,303 yards with 81 touchdowns and 32 interceptions.
The 2021 season was Pickett’s best, as he finished as a Heisman finalist after throwing for 4,319 yards with 42 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Now, Pickett is looking to join a Steelers quarterback room that already includes free agent signing Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph.
Mike Tomlin wasn’t concerned about Pickett’s hand size, either
Even with some concerns out there about Pickett’s hand size, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin wasn’t worried. Pickett has played a lot of football in Pittsburgh, and when Tomlin assessed and watched his game in college, he didn’t see anything that worried him at all.
“I potentially was capable of buying into that if I didn’t watch him play college football in Pittsburgh and deal with the elements that comes with playing in this environment,” Tomlin said about Pickett’s hands. “You can get into the hand-size thing, or you can just look at how he performed in a variety of conditions, and we have those conditions here in Pittsburgh. There’s very little speculation, from my perspective, about how he might handle the ball [during] inclement weather, wet days, etc.
“They played North Carolina here on a Thursday night. I actually went to the game, and it was raining pretty good that night. [Pickett] had no issues and so it was probably less of an issue for us as it was just in terms of some of the draft chatter.”
Even though the Steelers signed Trubisky in the offseason, Pickett has a real opportunity to come in and earn playing time right out of the gates in Pittsburgh.