Dan Orlovsky evaluates Steelers QB Kenny Pickett's play through 2 games

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett hasn’t lived up to expectations this season following a strong finish last year. On Tuesday, ESPN analyst and former NFL QB Dan Orlovsky broke down Pickett’s 2023 performances.

“I don’t know exactly what he’s getting taught but Kenny Pickett is not looking at the picture pre-snap and going, ‘I really like this,’ the way I would expect a quarterback to,” Orlovsky said during an appearance on the “Pat McAfee Show.”

Pickett’s numbers reflect his mistakes. Through two games, the 6-foot-3 QB completed 46 of 76 passes for 454 yards and two touchdowns while throwing three interceptions. The Steelers sit at 1-1 after picking up a win over the Cleveland Browns on Monday evening.

This isn’t the first time Pickett has struggled with turnovers. In fact, the former Pitt standout tossed eight interceptions in his first five appearances last season. Orlovsky believes Pickett isn’t taking advantage of mismatches on the field.

“He’s got Allen Robinson as the solo receiver to his right versus Denzel Ward,” Orlovsky said. “George Pickens is up, all the way extended out to the field and I think it’s [Greg] Newsome, or I don’t know exactly the corner but it’s man-to-man. It’s 3rd and 3. There’s there’s nobody out to the field except the Nickels covering the slot. There’s no extra-hole defender.

“As a quarterback, I got Alan Robinson versus Denzel Ward into the boundary; Denzel Ward is definitely a better cover corner,” Orlovsky said. “Then, Pickens with all that field winning the slant versus a No. 2 or No. 3 corner. That ball should go to George Pickens 100 out of 100 times.”

Kenny Pickett’s concerning pattern

It didn’t. Despite Pickett’s slow start, there’s still hope for the second-year QB. After all, Steelers fans saw a similar pattern last year. After escaping his slump, Pickett finished 2022 with 245 completions for 2,404 yards and seven touchdowns.

Nonetheless, turnovers aren’t the only issues Orlovsky sees in Pickett’s game.

He stared down guys too much last night and he has not been doing that. That was surprising to me. Then, I count three misses throw-wise,” Orlovsky said. “He’s too good of a player to miss those throws. I don’t think last night was a Matt Canada night. I’m not saying it was Kyle Shanahan but Kenny did not play well last night.”

Pickett will look to bounce back this weekend. On Sunday, the Steelers will face off against the Las Vegas Raiders at 8:20 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on NBC.