Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said he turned to rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett during the Week Four loss to the Jets in part because the club needed a spark offensively.
Anything Pickett may have lit was quickly extinguished in Buffalo, as the Bills thumped the Steelers 38-3 on Sunday.
In his first start, Pickett finished 34-of-52 for 327 yards with an interception. He also took three sacks.
“Just point blank, we didn’t put points up, so that’s the No. 1 thing,” Pickett said in his postgame press conference. “We’ve got to be a lot better in the red zone. I felt like we moved the ball, but we just couldn’t finish. So, it’s something that we have to get fixed definitely quickly and get back to the drawing board here on Monday.”
Pittsburgh’s offense has been generally ineffective all season, as the Steelers rank No. 28 in yards and no. 30 in points scored. The club has just two touchdown passes all season, none of which have come from Pickett in six quarters.
“I mean, everyone’s got to do the job right? There’re talented guys out there with me,” Pickett said. “I think we have to kind of look in the mirror at ourselves as players and figure out what we have to do better. There’s a lot of fingers to be pointed, but when you look at yourself, I think we will improve a lot faster that way. So, it starts with myself, and I want to look at what I can improve on and get ready to go next week.”
There isn’t much relief for Pickett and the offense on the horizon, as the Steelers will host the Buccaneers and their vaunted defense in Week Six.
