Hines Ward calls Steelers rookie QB Kenny Pickett a 'gunslinger' with 'moxie'
Former Steelers great Hines Ward sees similarites between Ben Roethlisberger and rookie QB Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh's starter in Week 5 against Buffalo.
"I thought he had an amazing year last year at the University of Pitt. Just watching him throughout his whole career, he's a gunslinger. He has a moxie to him," Ward told Rob Maaddi on the AP Pro Football Podcast.
In a Week 4 loss to the Jets, Pickett showed flashes of why the Steelers selected him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
"I want a confident quarterback that believes he can make every throw, believes that he can win games," Ward said. "That's the one thing about Ben. Every time he stepped in that huddle, he had that look that we're going to win games."
Ward won two Super Bowls with the Steelers and Roethlisberger, who retired in the offseason.
There is a difference between the start to each quarterback's career. The Steelers turned to Pickett in need of an offensive spark while Roethlisberger got his first start in 2004 in place of an injured Tommy Maddox.
"He came in, and for us, we had a veteran team already," Ward said. "So Ben came into a perfect situation because we really didn't have to rely on Ben to win games."
Pickett and Roethlisberger do have at least one thing in common: a tough, hard-nosed receiver from Georgia.
Roethlisberger had a special connection with Ward, a former Georgia star. Pickett and fellow rookie George Pickens, also a former Georgia star, seem to have a good on-field rapport. Against the Jets, Pickens caught six passes for 102 yards -- his first 100-yard receiving game in the NFL.
He also had a highlight block reminiscent of Ward's days with the Steelers.
Can Pickett and Pickens help turn around the 1-3 Steelers and avoid having head coach Mike Tomlin's first season under .500?
Stay tuned.
More must-reads: