National Football League

Steelers tab Pitt QB Kenny Pickett as Big Ben’s successor

Updated Apr. 28, 2022 11:27 p.m. ET

Kenny Pickett is staying in Pittsburgh.

The Pittsburgh Steelers grabbed the former University of Pittsburgh star with the 20th overall pick in the NFL Draft on Thursday night, making him the heir apparent to Ben Roethlisberger, who retired in January.

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Pickett spent five seasons working on the other side of the building the Steelers share with the Panthers, coming into his own last fall when he threw for 42 touchdowns, was named ACC Player of the Year and finished third in the Heisman Trophy behind Alabama quarterback Bryce Young and Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson.

The pick caps a meteoric rise for Pickett, who decided to come back for a fifth season rather than enter the draft last spring. Pickett’s bet on himself paid off handsomely as he led the Panthers to an ACC title while he skyrocketed up draft boards.

Pickett was the first quarterback taken in what is considered a so-so class. The last time the first quarterback off the board was taken 20th or later was in 1997 when San Francisco selected Jim Druckenmiller with the 26th selection. Druckenmiller went 1-0 in two seasons with the 49ers before being traded to Miami and never playing in the NFL again.

During the draft process, Pickett was dinged for having small hands (measured 8 ½ inches at the NFL Scouting Combine and 8 5/8 inches at his pro day), the smallest of any NFL signal-caller.

According to NFL.com, Pickett is "an average deep-ball thrower who doesn't have incredible velocity on his passes. But he overcomes the lack of a big arm with anticipation and gets through his progressions quickly. Coaches and scouts gush about Pickett's competitiveness and leadership from the quarterback position."

The Steelers have long rued passing on former Pitt star Dan Marino in the 1983 draft. Marino went on to a Hall of Fame career while the Steelers spent the next two decades searching for a franchise quarterback before taking Roethlisberger 11th overall in 2004.

General manager Kevin Colbert and his staff dove headfirst into the search, seeing some of the top quarterback prospects a half-dozen times in person and bringing in seven of them for pre-draft visits.

Colbert played coy during the run-up to his final draft with the team before retiring, saying he would be fine if Pittsburgh stood pat with Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph even if in reality NFL teams need at least four quarterbacks to navigate training camp.

After the smoke cleared, Colbert settled on the prospect next door.

Reporting from Associated Press.