Kenny Pickett canceled Steelers workout after Russell Wilson news

NFL

By Max Weisman

Kenny Pickett didn’t handle the Steelers’ Russell Wilson signing well.

The day after Wilson agreed a one-year deal with the Steelers last week, Pickett canceled an out-of-town workout with the team’s wide receivers, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

During Russell Wilson’s introductory press conference, the newest Steeler said he messaged Pickett, 25, after he agreed to sign in Pittsburgh.

“Just to tell him, ‘Hey, every day we go out there, let’s be the best version of ourselves and try to make this team better,’ ” Wilson said. “That was cool.”

Pickett, though, was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles along with a 2024 fourth-round pick just hours after Wilson’s press conference.

In return, Pittsburgh received a 2024 third-round pick and two 2025 seventh-rounders.

While the Steelers had high hopes for the New Jersey native, whom they took No. 20 overall in 2022 out of University of Pittsburgh, he did not show he could be the team’s long-term answer at quarterback.

Pickett threw for 4,474 yards, 13 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in 25 games (24 starts) over two seasons.

Now, Pickett will back up Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia after being seen as a possible successor to Ben Roethlisberger.

With Pickett gone, the Steelers traded a 2025 conditional sixth-round pick to the Chicago Bears for former first-round pick Justin Fields to be their new backup.

The sixth-rounder becomes a fourth-rounder if Fields plays 51 percent or more of snaps in 2024.

The move all but guarantees Chicago will select a quarterback, likely Caleb Williams, with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.