NFL Draft

Could Kenny Pickett be the first quarterback off the board in the 2022 NFL draft?

It's possible, and one AFC executive believes the Pittsburgh Panthers star is probably the most pro-ready QB in this year's class, per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler:

Multiple execs have actually used the term 'safe' when describing Pickett to me, in that you know what you're getting with him. An AFC exec called Pickett 'probably [the] most pro-ready' despite not wowing much this week. And you weren't the only one impressed with his red zone work Thursday, Todd. Many execs pointed it out when talking about his game after Pickett found open targets there both inside and to the corners." 

Pickett had a great senior season for the Panthers, completing 67.2 percent of his passes for 4,319 yards and 42 touchdowns against seven interceptions. He also rushed for 233 yards and five scores.

The 23-year-old has been in Alabama all week preparing for the 2022 Senior Bowl, which took place Saturday. Entering the game, he was named the top quarterback on the National Team, beating out Cincinnati's Desmond Ridder and Nevada's Carson Strong for the honor.

During the Senior Bowl, Pickett completed all six of his passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. Ridder went 4-of-6 for 68 yards and two touchdowns, while Strong went 6-of-11 for 67 yards and an interception.

After coming off the field during the game, a 20-10 win for the National Team, Pickett addressed why he believes he should be the first quarterback selected in this year's draft.

"I think I know how to win," Pickett said while speaking with NFL Network. "That's the number one thing in this game, so that right there."

In addition to Pickett, Malik Willis, Matt Corral and Sam Howell are expected to be some of the top quarterbacks off the board.

Several teams in need of an upgrade at quarterback could be interested in selecting Pickett in this year's draft, including the Carolina Panthers, Pittsburgh Steelers, Denver Broncos and Detroit Lions.

The Steelers need a quarterback after Ben Roethlisberger announced his retirement following a playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Panthers could use a new signal-caller with Sam Darnold continuing to struggle, and the same could be said for Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater in Denver, and Jared Goff in Detroit. 

With the right player at the most important position, a basement-dwelling or middling NFL squad can become a title contender in a short time frame.

Just look at the Cincinnati Bengals. In 2019, they had the league's worst record (2-14) and then selected Joe Burrow with the first pick in the 2020 draft. This season, he led the club to its first playoff win in 31 years and a Super Bowl 56 appearance.

Franchises underscore the position's importance by wheeling and dealing in the draft.

Last year, the San Francisco 49ers made a bold move, trading up from the No. 12 spot to No. 3 for Trey Lance. During the same draft, the Chicago Bears made a leap from No. 20 to the 11th slot for Justin Fields.

So which team will go all-in for a shot at its target signal-caller in 2002?

We can narrow the likely candidates to a handful of squads: the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and Washington Commanders.

First, let's go through a few variables that can impact the quarterback plan for those franchises.

On Tuesday, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo made it clear to reporters he expects the 49ers to trade him, and he wants to land in a winning environment. The Saints, Buccaneers and Steelers finished the 2021 campaign with records above .500—the latter two teams went to the playoffs. If the 30-year-old signal-caller has a say in his trade destination, he could see a future with one of the three clubs.

Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Green Bay Packers have "cautious optimism" about their chance to keep Aaron Rodgers in 2022, though he'll weigh his options in the coming weeks.

Following a divisional-round loss to the 49ers, Rodgers said he doesn't "want to be part of a rebuild." The 38-year-old would likely go to a well-built roster or a winning organization if he plays elsewhere. You can put the Buccaneers, Steelers and even the Broncos in play for his services. In 2021, Denver finished 7-10, but its roster features a top-three scoring defense and a plethora of pass-catching options in Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, Tim Patrick and Noah Fant.

By the way, the Broncos hired former Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, who has a close relationship with Rodgers, to be their head coach.

As for the Panthers (No. 6 pick) and Commanders (No. 11 pick), they don't necessarily have to trade up to get a top passer from this year's underwhelming class, as both teams sit in decent spots to nab one.

Even though the Steelers have a track record for winning, which could appeal to Rodgers or make them a potential Garoppolo landing spot, they're connected to Liberty's Malik Willis, who won over the crowd during Senior Bowl week in Mobile, Alabama.

"There's a lot of Willis-Steelers smoke right now," Bleacher Report's Ian Kenyon said after Thursday's practices. "No other QB really established themselves as a top-tier QB."

NBC Sports Edge's Thor Nystrom caught wind of the quarterback buzz and offered another perspective that revealed the Steelers' preference for Willis over Pittsburgh's Kenny Pickett. 

Following an uneven practice session Tuesday, Willis became the talk of Senior Bowl week after he dazzled spectators with his pinpoint passes and scrambling ability in rainy conditions during Wednesday's session. 

If Pittsburgh favors Willis after Senior Bowl week, the front office should consider a predraft move from No. 20 into the top 10, jumping in front of the Commanders, who have one signal-caller, Taylor Heinicke, on the books in 2022. The New York Giants might consider a move down from the fifth or seventh spot after general manager Joe Schoen said in late January the team will build around quarterback Daniel Jones. 

In the event the Steelers pull off a deal with the Giants for the fifth overall pick, they'd leapfrog the quarterback-needy Panthers at No. 6.

As Ben Roethlisberger goes into retirement, the Steelers have just one quarterback under contract beyond the 2021 campaign. Mason Rudolph has one year left on his pact. Dwayne Haskins will become a restricted free agent, though ESPN's Jeremy Fowler expects the team to retain him with an original-round tender for roughly $2.5 million.

Nonetheless, Haskins, who had a rocky start to his NFL career with 12 touchdown passes, 14 interceptions and a 60.1 completion rate through 16 games in Washington, isn't likely to prevent the Steelers from weighing their options. 

Pittsburgh can start training camp with an open competition at quarterback. If Willis loses the battle to Rudolph or Haskins, he could sit for a year, which may be best for him. 

As Kenyon pointed out, the Steelers must address their offensive line, which allowed Roethlisberger an average of 2.1 seconds (tied for the shortest time among qualifying passers) in a clean pocket.

If Nystrom's source is correct about the Steelers' quarterback rankings, team brass might prefer Willis over Pickett because the former can make more plays with his legs, which may offset some issues with a poor pass-blocking offensive line.

After transferring from Auburn to Liberty, Willis rushed for 1,822 yards and 27 touchdowns in two seasons. Though Pickett has functional mobility, he's not an explosive playmaker on foot or a natural ball-carrier.

The Steelers shouldn't sit and hope to strike a deal with the 49ers for Garoppolo, who's not a home run acquisition in light of his injury history and spotty accuracy, which is troublesome outside the numbers. Since 2018, he's missed 25 games. For much of Garoppolo's tenure in San Francisco, head coach Kyle Shanahan trusted the rushing attack more than the QB. 

To acquire Rodgers, Pittsburgh would have to account for a chunk of his $46.7 million cap hit, which isn't a major stretch with a projected $31.3 million in cap space, per Over the Cap. However, the Broncos ($38.8 million) have more flexibility, and the Colts can potentially make a move for an upgrade over Carson Wentz with $40.9 million in cap space. 

As longtime general manager Kevin Colbert transitions out of his front-office role, he can leave a lasting impression on the organization with a blockbuster trade that allows the team to draft Roethlisberger's successor. 

Willis has tremendous upside, and he's dynamic with his physical tools. During Senior Bowl week, ESPN's Jordan Reid saw him improve from Day 1 to Day 2 despite inclement weather conditions. That's a good sign of a player's ability to make adjustments with coaching direction. 

The Steelers staff can work on Willis' pocket presence and ball placement with the idea that he can develop in the mold of a Josh Allen-type quarterback.

Maurice Moton covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @MoeMoton.

With all due respect to the Masters, the annual consternation over the hand sizes of NFL draft-eligible quarterbacks is a tradition unlike any other.

This year, the spotlight is on Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett, and his collegiate head coach Pat Narduzzi is not happy about it, per ESPN's Andrea Adelson:

It's a complete joke, measuring this, measuring that. If they want to measure anything, what they should do is do open heart surgery, go check and see how big that chest cavity is and how big the heart is inside that chest, if you really want to analyze. What are we talking about? There's nobody out there who's going to play harder and put everything he's got into it than Kenny Pickett. This kid doesn't have a flaw. That's what [scouts] do. It's the same thing at the combine, they're going to find something else to pick on him. It's not going to be a factor.

Pickett, who is currently attending the Senior Bowl, has chosen to delay his hand-size measurements until the NFL Scouting Combine in March.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Network explained why:

As noted by Chase Goodbread of NFL.com, an AFC area scout said that Pickett's hand size "is under nine [inches], for sure."

That hand size didn't matter when Pickett was carving up defenses last year to the tune of 4,319 passing yards, 42 touchdowns (seven interceptions) and 8.7 yards per attempt en route to leading Pitt to the ACC title.

Ultimately, hand size concerns aren't anything new. Of note, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow's hand size came into question two years ago, but the signal-caller fired back at his critics:

Burrow and his nine-inch hands have since led the Bengals to their Super Bowl appearance in 33 years.

It's up for debate in regards to how Pickett will fare in the pros, but it's highly unlikely his hand size will have anything to do with it.