Ben Roethlisberger admits he initially didn’t want Kenny Pickett to succeed with Steelers; here’s what changed

Ben Roethlisberger is the quarterback who helped bring Super Bowl titles back to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He’ll always have a place in Pittsburgh lore, being recognized as one of the greatest Steelers in their storied history. 

No player was the franchise quarterback of the Steelers outside of Roethlisberger from 2004 through 2021. He was the face of the team, so the spotlight was always on him. That changed the moment Roethlisberger retired, followed by the Steelers’ selection of Kenny Pickett in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. 

Roethlisberger selfishly wanted the shine on his Steelers legacy to last longer. He’s only human.

“I’ll be completely honest. And I’ll be super transparent. I’m gonna get blasted,” Roethlisberger said on his podcast. “I probably shouldn’t say this. But I mean, who cares at this point. I wouldn’t say that I wanted Kenny to necessarily fail. 

“But when someone comes to replace you and you’re like, I still feel like I had it, I hope he doesn’t come in and ball out — because then it’s like, ‘Ben who?'”

While Roethlisberger didn’t want Pickett to have the initial success he had, he reversed course as he saw the growth Pickett showed throughout the year. Pickett completed 63% of his passes for 2,404 yards with seven touchdowns to nine interceptions last season for a 76.7 passer rating.

Pickett led NFL rookies in passing yards and joined Roethlisberger as the only rookies in franchise history to pass for 2,000 or more yards. He became the first quarterback since the 1970 merger to have multiple rushing touchdowns in his first career game and was the first rookie in NFL history to have a game-winning TD pass in the final minute of the fourth quarter in back-to-back games (Week 16 vs. Las Vegas and Week 17 at Baltimore).

The Steelers won six of their last seven games to close the season, finishing with a winning record — even though they missed the postseason. Roethlisberger told Pickett he was sold on him being the next franchise quarterback. 

“As the season went on, he got into like the third game playing, I was rooting for him,” Roethlisberger said. “I was excited for you. I wanted you to succeed. I wanted you to win the games. I wanted you to get to playoffs. 

“So, I feel bad that I felt that early on, but I’m glad that I transitioned into loving and rooting for you…It’s been fun watching you, man. I’m a fan.”