This week’s matchup between the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers was going to have a storyline at the quarterback position for the Steelers. It was either going to be Mitchell Trusbisky returning to Buffalo as the starting quarterback of the Steelers. The former first round pick was with the Bills last year as Josh Allen’s backup.
The other storyline was going to be rookie Kenny Pickett making his first career start and Mike Tomlin confirmed, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, on Tuesday that it would be in fact the rookie starting for Pittsburgh on Sunday.
Kenny Pickett replaced Trubisky midway through the game last week against the New York Jets and provided a spark for the offense. He would finish the game with 120 passing yards and two rushing touchdowns but also threw three interceptions.
Buffalo Bills have had success against rookie QBs with Sean McDermott as head coach
There is no question this will be a big challenge for Kenny Pickett as Sean McDermott has done a great job against rookie quarterbacks. As Joe DiBiase with WGR550 tweeted, McDermott has a 7-3 career record against rookie quarterbacks with one of those losses being the Wind Game from last year against the New England Patriots.
Rookie quarterbacks against Sean McDermott's Bills...
— Joe DiBiase (@SneakyJoeSports) October 4, 2022
57.1% comp, 165 yards/game, 5 TDs, 15 INTs, 3W-7L pic.twitter.com/Ti8lAhBK0m
This season the Buffalo Bills’ defense has been one of the toughest to throw against and is currently allowing the fewest passing yards in the league at only 150.3 yards per game.
They also have allowed the second-fewest passing touchdowns with only three and tied for first in the league in interceptions with seven. Safety Jordan Poyer has been a big reason for this as he has four interceptions already, which is the most of any player in the NFL.
The combination of this defense, along with the first start coming on the road at Highmark Stadium, should make it very tough for Kenny Pickett in his first career start against the Buffalo Bills.
Buffalo Bills don’t need a traditional run game to win a Super Bowl
The Buffalo Bills running backs haven't been successful running the ball this year but that shouldn't be too much of a concern for this team.