Kovacevic: Did Pickett pout his way out? Or did Steelers mislead him?

Kenny Pickett's out.

And ... uh, wow.

On this Friday afternoon, the Steelers traded their starting quarterback of the past two seasons, their first-round pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, the kid who grew up next door in starring for Pitt, to the Eagles for an exchange of future picks. This follows a tumultuous week at the roster's most important position in which Russell Wilson was signed out of free agency and Mason Rudolph left as a free agent for the Titans.

Leaving all three of the team's 2023 quarterbacks out, including Mitch Trubisky, who left as a free agent for the Bills.

Leaving Wilson all alone in the room.

And you know, if I'm being all-the-way honest, all of this, even the Pickett trade, feels just as surprising ... as it doesn't, given Pickett's outspoken pride or poutiness or however one might care describe his self-belief that he's an NFL starter.

Several related thoughts on this:

• Per a team source, when Wilson signed, Pickett initially was told by management -- I don't know by whom, specifically -- that he'd open up on an equal level with Wilson. Later, he was told Wilson would enter OTAs and training camp as No. 1. That struck Pickett as not carrying the same meaning, he looked around the league and saw others from his draft class changing teams for a fresh start, and he decided he'd want the same. Told the team, and that was that.

• Please don't ask me to elaborate on the above. It's all I've got. And again, it's from the team, not anyone in the Pickett camp. I've not made contact with that camp for more than a month.

• No, seriously, I can't even guess as to where the wires were crossed in this scenario. It can't be ruled out that Pickett was misled, just as it can't be ruled out that he heard what he wanted to hear the first time around. I don't know ... whatever.

• Pickett won't have a better shot in Philadelphia than here, with Jalen Hurts entrenched to the extreme with the Eagles, but hey, fresh start means fresh start. And given recent precedent, he's probably lucky he wasn't shipped off to Charlotte, right?

• It'd become clear over the past couple years that Pickett was susceptible to the occasional pout, and I'd criticized him for it at times, most notably when he tersely responded "No" to a reporter's question about whether there was anything he might've learned from watching Rudolph run the offense. But there's no need to extrapolate that into outright fiction. I reported in this morning's Friday Insider that Pickett absolutely, unequivocally did not refuse to suit up for the New Year's Eve game in Seattle, though he had conveyed some concern about showing up at the stadium and seeing his equipment staged in his stall. He spoke with Mike Tomlin about it, and it was quickly decided by the head coach that he wouldn't suit up and, in turn, wouldn't be designated the emergency quarterback. That was it. Drama-free. And this from an individual who was right there in the room for all this. Which didn't stop some in the local media from tweeting out that it did happen within minutes of the trade becoming known, since, hey, they'd never again have to explain to Pickett to his face why they did so.

• I hate this business sometimes. This is one of those.

• I hate even more the percentage of people who can't see through something so obvious.

• Who deserves the bulk of the blame for turning a recent first-rounder into a late third-rounder and two seventh-rounders? Kevin Colbert's the obvious culprit, as it'd been his stated mission at the time to leave the Steelers with their next franchise quarterback in hand. But let's also recall that everyone, including Tomlin, was ecstatic over this selection.

• If anyone associated with the Steelers was even peripherally aware Pickett would want out, why would they -- repeating from the same Insider -- not extend Rudolph so much as a single contract offer? If this is the case, seriously, who's at the wheel? Not to suggest Rudolph was under any obligation to stick around and wait anyone out, but there might've been a chance.

• No, Rudolph's not coming back. He told our Ramon Foster yesterday he's delighted to be in Nashville, and I believe it:

• Who's next? Justin Fields as a project of sorts? I feel almost awkward confessing that I'd have interest in him within a backup role, whereas I didn't as a starter. He's 25, he could still improve by simple virtue of escaping Chicago, and he'd have some time bought with Wilson, another mobile quarterback, starting. One massive catch: He'd need to be retained at a fifth-year option cost of $25.6 million. Now, that's applied to the 2025 cap, but it's still -- no pun intended -- a bit much to bear.

• Is Ben Roethlisberger still available?

• Nah? Well, Wilson it is, then. I thought he acquitted himself quite nicely at his introductory press conference this afternoon, and that's not nothing. But all he needs now is a new center, a wide receiver or three, an instinctive grasp of an all-new playbook under an all-new coordinator and ... when's camp open again?

• At least one quarterback emerged happy: