Steelers' Mike Tomlin Praises Kenny Pickett's Growth as Leader: 'That Is Significant'

Kenny Pickett's shown obvious improvement in his play during the 2023 preseason, but Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin has come away most impressed with the young quarterback's improvement as a leader.

"The leadership things, the communication things, the bringing-people-together things," Tomlin told reporters Thursday. "That is significant. It's not play-related, but it is. He is the catalyst for that unit, he controls the pace and the tenor of that unit, and I think if he's comfortable that unit is comfortable, and I think that's been the biggest difference."

Pickett finished his preseason with 186 yards and two touchdowns while completing 13 of his 15 pass attempts. The Steelers offense has looked poised for a breakout throughout the postseason as Pickett's picked up right where he left off in the second half of 2022.

After looking overwhelmed over his first five NFL appearances, tossing eight interceptions to only two touchdowns, Pickett turned things around as the year progressed. The Pitt product threw only one interception in his final eight appearances of 2022 and had a touchdown pass in his last three starts.

While the jury's still out on Pickett ever becoming a bonafide NFL superstar, his turnaround last season combined with a strong postseason has hype rising in Pittsburgh. Steelers position players in particular might wind up being undervalued in fantasy drafts if Pickett lives up to the preseason performance level.