Kenny Pickett Senior Bowl Recap: Size Doesn’t Matter
Kenny Pickett was already a popular name in Mobile on Monday when he didn’t get his hands measured. Speculations around the league were that Pickett had small hands and would accordingly hurt his draft stock. However, after day one of practice at the Senior Bowl, Kenny Pickett proved that size doesn’t matter.
Regardless of Pickett having short hands or not, he was slinging it at practice. Not just short routes, but intermediate and deep too. On the National Team he was alongside quarterbacks Desmond Ridder and Carson Strong. Particularly Carson Strong is known for his cannon and Pickett was matching his velocity throw for throw.
Admittedly Strong can throw the ball further, but on intermediate routes, Pickett’s passes were getting there just as quickly as Strong’s. Not only that but Pickett’s precision put his performance over the top. During seven on seven drills, Pickett put on a clinic, scanning the field and rifling it into the open receiver’s hands.
Kenny Pickett is vying for the QB1 spot in the 2022 NFL Draft and rightfully so. This past season he put up 4,319 yards and 42 touchdowns on a 67.2% completion percentage. The numbers are there, it was only a matter of if he could play at an evenly leveled competition at the Senior Bowl. The Kenny Pickett Senior Bowl show wasn’t without faults though. During 11 on 11 drills, the offensive line was getting toasted and Pickett struggled. After taking a sack, Pickett was flushed out of the pocket on the next play and threw an errant pass into double coverage. Like most quarterbacks, it’s clear Pickett must operate in a relatively clean pocket, but going forward I’d like to see him create on his own when the pocket breaks down. A trait the other quarterback prospect Malik Willis possesses on a very high level.
Several NFL teams are in the market for a quarterback, the question is who to take. The Senior Bowl will help prove which of the two prospects will be the better pick come April, but as of right now the answer is clearly Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett.
