Kenny Pickett – wiki, stats, position, height, weight, NFL draft
Kenny Pickett – wiki, stats, position, height, weight, NFL draft. Kenneth Shane Pickett is a quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He was born on June 6, 1998. He went to college at the University of Pittsburgh and played football there. As a senior, he won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, and the Steelers picked him in the first round of the NFL Draft in 2022.
The Beginning
Pickett was born in Oakhurst, NJ, on June 6, 1998. He went to high school in Ocean Township. As a junior, Pickett led the Ocean Township Spartans to a 9-2 record and the New Jersey Central Group III semifinal game. In his senior year, Pickett was ranked as the No. 23 best high school football player in New Jersey by 247Sports. He threw for 4,670 yards and 43 touchdowns and ran for 873 yards and 17 touchdowns during his career. He was going to play football in college at Temple University, but he changed his mind and switched to the University of Pittsburgh.
College career
In 2017
In 2017, Pickett was a true freshman at Pittsburgh. He spent most of the year as a back-up to Max Browne and Ben DiNucci. Then, in Pittsburgh’s last game of the season, against the second-ranked Miami Hurricanes, he got his first advent. During the team’s surprising win, he completed 18 of 29 passes for 193 yards and a touchdown.
In 2018
In 2018, Pickett was Pittsburgh’s starter again. He was the starting quarterback for all 14 games. He completed 180 of 310 passes for 1,969 yards, 12 touchdowns, and six picks. At one point in the 2018 season, the Associated Press ranked the Panthers as the 24th best team in the country.
In 2019
Pickett was the starter again in 2019. He started 12 games and only missed one game because of an injury. He was successful with 289 of 469 passes for 3,098 yards, 13 touchdowns, and nine picks. This was Pickett’s first season with Mark Whipple as the offensive coordinator. Each week, the offense threw more passes because of Whipple. Before the playoffs, he led the Panthers to a 7-5 record.
In 2020
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season for Pickett and the Panthers was cut short, and they went 6-5. Pickett played in nine games. During that time, he threw for 2,408 yards, 13 touchdowns, and nine picks. At one point in the 2020 season, the Associated Press ranked the Panthers as the 21st best team in the country. Even though they were eligible for a bowl game, the Panthers decided as a team not to play in the postseason.
In 2021
All fall athletes in 2020 got an extra year of eligibility from the NCAA, which Pickett used to become the Panthers’ starting quarterback again in 2021. Pickett used his last year of eligibility to become one of the best players in the country. He had 4,319 yards and 42 touchdowns, which set school records for yards in a single season, touchdowns in a career, and both. Pickett was named to the first team of All-Americans, and he came in third place for the Heisman Trophy. Pittsburgh won the ACC Championship, and in games that Pickett started, the team went 11-2, which was the best record for the school since 1976. He got his bachelor’s degree in marketing and then went to the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business. In July of that year, Pickett was named the men’s ACC Athlete of the Year for all sports. Charlotte North of Boston College lacrosse was the women’s winner.
Career as a professional
Before the draft, journalists looked closely at Pickett’s hands, which were 812 inches long, because they thought that could make him more likely to drop the ball. Nonetheless, in the 2022 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers picked him in the first round, at number 20 overall. It was the latest since 1997 that the first quarterback had been taken in the draft.