Jets' late rally spoils Pickett's NFL debut

The Pittsburgh Steelers turned to first-round rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett to replace Mitch Trubisky for the second half of Sunday's 24-20 loss against the New York Jets.

Pittsburgh inserted Pickett after Trubisky struggled to spark the offense, leaving the Steelers trailing 10-6 at halftime. The veteran quarterback completed 7 of 13 pass attempts for 84 yards with one interception and was sacked three times.

Pickett, 24, had his first pass attempt intercepted but engineered two scoring drives in the second half. The rookie capped both drives with a rushing touchdown.

He led the Steelers to a 20-10 lead before New York stormed back with 14 unanswered points to win. Zach Wilson put together a 10-play, 65-yard drive that culminated in Breece Hall's game-winning touchdown with 16 seconds remaining.

Pickett finished the game with 10 completions on 13 attempts for 120 yards with three interceptions and no passing touchdowns.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin faced numerous questions about a potential move to the rookie following Pittsburgh's Thursday Night Football loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 3. Tomlin had said he was "definitely" not considering a change at quarterback or play-caller duties.

Selected 20th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft, Pickett impressed in the preseason with 261 yards and three touchdowns to zero interceptions.

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