Fans at Acrisure Stadium chanted 'KEN-NY!' during the second half of the Steelers' preseason finale against the Lions.
That's good. Because Sunday's 19-9 victory over the Lions to complete a 3-0 preseason might be the last time they see Kenny Pickett for a while -- save holding a clipboard on the sideline.
Mitch Trubisky will be the Steelers' starting quarterback Sept. 11 in Cincinnati. Mike Tomlin isn't saying it -- yet. But every action he's taken throughout this process, every move he's made, every practice and game rep he's doled out have screamed it as much as if he had bought a neon sign proclaiming it atop Mount Washington.
"I might, but you're not going to have that today," Tomlin said when asked if he has a starter at quarterback. "We're not going to do knee-jerk reactions and statements following a performance. We'll go through our proper (evaluation)."
That's OK. Tomlin doesn't have to make any announcement at this time. Heck, he can wait until late in the week prior to playing the Bengals to make that announcement if he chooses.
But Trubisky did nothing in this game to lose the job, completing 15 of 19 passes for 160 yards and a touchdown while leading the Steelers to a 16-0 lead.
It wasn't perfect. The Steelers settled for three Chris Boswell field goals in the first half, including one after a Cam Sutton interception and return set the Steelers up at the Detroit 19 to start a possession early in the second quarter.
But if there was any doubt, Trubisky took over at his own 8 with just 1:34 remaining in the first half and led a masterful touchdown drive in under a minute and a half, using just two timeouts and overcoming a holding penalty on right tackle Chuks Okorafor.
"It was good," Trubisky said of the touchdown drive. "We finished in the end zone, so that was ideal.
"We went right down the field and scored a touchdown. I thought it was smooth, good communication, getting in and out of the huddle."
Along the way, Trubisky, signed on the opening day of free agency, connected on a 22-yard back-shoulder throw to rookie George Pickens and a 32-yard pass down the seam to tight end Pat Freiermuth to set up his 6-yard touchdown pass to Steven Sims.
He was in complete command and it capped off a preseason in which he completed 24 of 34 passes for 283 yards and two touchdowns for a passer rating of 115.2.
Trubisky began the offseason as the Steelers' QB1. He remained QB1 throughout training camp and the preseason. And he did nothing to lose that job in this process.
"I feel confident with where I'm at in our overall developing with our offense," Trubisky said. "I feel confident, and I'm excited to see where we go from here."
Pickett, the team's No. 1 draft pick, was good in the preseason, as well. He laid claim to the No. 2 job, finishing the preseason 29 of 36 for 261 yards and three touchdowns -- including 10 of 14 for 90 yards in this game -- but that's not enough to unseat Trubisky.
The plan all along for the Steelers was for Trubisky to be the starter and to ease Pickett into things. That he unseated Mason Rudolph as the No. 2 is no small thing.
"Where I was at earlier in the preseason to now, I wasn't getting as many reps," Pickett said. "You always want more reps, so that's the key. The preseason was awesome."
Pickett showed he can step in and play at a high level. Given how the quarterbacks in this draft class were viewed in the spring, that's no small feat. The Steelers certainly didn't err in taking him in the first round.
And perhaps at some point this season, Pickett will be the starter -- be it through an injury to Trubisky or poor play either at quarterback or by the team. But it won't happen out of the gate.
• Some might look at the running stats from this game and feel like the Steelers accomplished nothing in this game in terms of re-establishing that part of their offense.
But there was some progress there, as well.
Not only did Trubisky hit some passes down the field to Pickens and Freiermuth, he also connected on this pretty 38-yard completion to Diontae Johnson in the first quarter.
Now, Johnson banged his shoulder on the play and did not return, but those are the kind of plays that were missing in the Steelers offense the past two seasons. And they should help to back some defenders out of the box and open things up more for Najee Harris, who had 10 yards on four carries in this game.
"He's a beast," Trubisky said of Harris. "It's our job to create running lanes for him and lighter boxes with our matchups on the outside.
"He's obviously a special talent, and he makes this offense go."
• Both Johnson and T.J. Watt would have returned to this game had it been a meaningful one, but the one in the third quarter to safety Damontae Kazee was a serious one.
Kazee appeared to get his left arm trapped under his body as he made a tackle along the sideline and came off holding the arm. He later appeared on the sideline with the arm in a sling.
"It makes his availability in the near future questionable," Tomlin said.
That's a blow to the Steelers defense. The team had a plan for Kazee, one it used in this game in the first half.
Kazee entered in the nickel defense in place of a defensive lineman and played deep safety, allowing Minkah Fitzpatrick to move up into the slot.
The Steelers did it a couple of times early, even blitzing Fitzpatrick off the edge. It's something they did throughout training camp, as well, and was going to be a new wrinkle in the defense this season to allow Fitzpatrick -- one of their best playmakers -- more freedom.
Now, with Kazee injured, we might not see that package for a while.
• New signee Elijah Riley joined the Steelers just this week after being released by the Jets. And he had four tackles and a touchdown-saving pass breakup in this game. He was good.
Riley started seven games for the Jets at strong safety last season, but the Steelers were using him as the deep safety in this game.
But that doesn't mean they'll be ready to do that with him in two weeks when they line up against the Bengals.
• While the fourth quarter of this game was kind of a mess -- the Steelers ran just 12 plays compared to a ridiculous 31 for the Lions, one player who stood out in that time aside from Riley, was rookie defensive lineman DeMarvin Leal.
The third-round draft pick was only credited with an assisted tackle, but he batted down a pass at the line of scrimmage and had a couple of quarterback hits, as well.
And then there was this play, which wound up as a 4-yard loss that he forced with strong penetration.
Leal didn't get credit for the tackle on that play, but he made it happen.
He's gotten better as training camp and the preseason have gone on and will be more than just a guy on scholarship this season. He has a chance to contribute.
• The Steelers made it through the entire preseason with their quarterbacks not turning the ball over. They completed 72.4 percent of their passes for 764 yards and seven touchdown passes for a passer rating of 113.1.
It doesn't matter if it's preseason or not, that's high-level play.
And taking care of the football was a big part of what Tomlin wanted to see.
"It speaks for itself," Tomlin said.
That it does. Now, that doesn't mean the Steelers won't throw interceptions this season -- obviously. But there weren't even many passes where the ball could have been intercepted in this entire preseason.
• The starting defense was good in this game, limiting the Lions to 111 total yards in the first half. But it was with David Blough and Tim Boyle at quarterback, so there is a curve to be graded on.
Detroit did run 12 times for 48 yards in the first half, an average of 4.0 per carry, but one of those runs was a 27-yarder on third-and-17. Take that out of the equation and the Lions had 11 carries for 21 yards.
That third-down run can't happen, especially against a team that did that same thing against the Steelers multiple times in a 16-16 tie last season. The players had to at least be thinking the Lions might run the ball there.
"The draw was painful," Tomlin admitted. "We've got to be more aware in those situations."
Devin Bush didn't get off a block on that run and the defensive backs just didn't get their heads around.
Bush got pulled for Robert Spillane briefly after that play, but returned and essentially played the entire first half next to Myles Jack. Spillane was playing in the third quarter with the backups while Bush and Jack were on the sidelines in street clothes.
There doesn't seem to be much question regarding who the starting inside linebackers will be.
• The team's depth at wide receiver is really good.
Unfortunately, there are a glut of wide receivers across the league. The Steelers will wind up cutting a couple of players at the position on Tuesday who could wind up with other teams. But because there will be a glut of players available at the position, it's unlikely a team will give the Steelers anything for a player such as Steven Sims, Miles Boykin, Cody White or Tyler Vaughns, all of whom played well in this preseason.
"I feel good about the group," Tomlin said. "I just appreciate the competitive spirit that all the guys gave us. And they played to their strengths. Big guys making big-guy plays. Miles Boykin, Cody White making possession-down plays at the sticks and things of that nature. The skedaddlers running around the perimeter.
"They're making our decisions difficult. And when you're in my position, you've got to respect and appreciate that."
• The same cannot be said of the outside linebacker spot behind Watt and Alex Highsmith.
You kept watching this game waiting for someone, anyone, at outside linebacker to make a play. Again, the Lions ran 32 plays in the fourth quarter, most of them passes. And nobody could get to the quarterback.
That will be a spot the Steelers will be watching closely on Tuesday when cuts are made.
• The Steelers completed their first unbeaten preseason since going 5-0 in 1997. They went to the AFC Championship that season with a new mobile quarterback, Kordell Stewart, at the helm.
I'm not predicting that this year. Just pointing that out.
• Tomlin played his starters longer than expected. But with two weeks off between now and the start of the regular season, it was probably needed.
"You can't box without sparring," Tomlin said.
The Kazee injury aside, the Steelers avoided any injuries that could have really gummed things up this season. But it's a fine line to walk.
The Steelers snuck up on the Bills last season in the regular season opener, at least in part because they were more ready to play than Buffalo. And at 9-7-1, they needed that win at season's end to get into the playoffs.
Other teams will treat the first few weeks of the regular season as if they are an extension of the preseason. That's why there are so many upsets early in the year.