The Pittsburgh Steelers were holding their breath, waiting to see if Kenny Pickett would be good to go for "Thursday Night Football," or if Mitch Trubisky would be the starter. After their loss in Week 8 to the Jacksonville Jaguars, Trubisky talked about how he needs to be better, and he will prepare for the game on Thursday as if he is the starter. However, Pickett announced in his news conference that he will play on Thursday for sure. After that announcement, the media waited for Trubisky to come to the podium and speak on the matter himself.
Trubisky was supposed to have his news conference after Pickett, but he never showed up. The Athletic's Mark Kaboly tweeted it out, speculating as to why Trubisky decided to ditch his interview.
The media can be pretty annoying to deal with at times, and Trubisky probably knew the exact questions they were going to ask. It would most likely be all questions about how he felt about Pickett starting, how he would handle it and prepare, and other questions along those same lines. Instead of dealing with the media, he no-showed his news conference without a single word coming out from him or about him.
Trubisky should know that he is there to be the backup and a mentor for Pickett, considering he signed an extension in the 2023 offseason to stay in Pittsburgh. It's still odd however, to see a backup player just walk away when the starter announces that he is healthy enough to play. Either way, it is still safe to expect him on the sidelines of Thursday's game, ready to go in case Pickett unfortunately suffers another injury.
Will the Steelers or NFL discipline Trubisky?
The NFL has cracked down on Marshawn Lynch for no-showing and/or giving zero answers during his news conferences. Because of that, there is a realistic possibility that they fine Trubisky for doing the same thing. Any potential discipline from the NFL's side will likely be announced on Saturday, when they normally dish out fines to players all across the league.
If Trubisky had to leave for an emergency or something else went wrong, we hope for the best for Trubisky. While news conferences can be very annoying at times for players and coaches, you still need to show up if you are scheduled to. Either way, it is great to see that Pickett is ready to go, and Trubisky should be ready to go if he is needed to.
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