Jets - 24, Steelers - 20
Q. (Indiscernible) got a lot of stuff to unpack there with a short period of time. What are the emotions?
KENNY PICKETT: Just disappointed. Wanted to come in and get the win. So that's really just the emotions. Just disappointed we didn't come out with the outcome we worked so hard for. Definitely something we need to learn from and move on.
Q. Jaylen Warren, (indiscernible) for the pitch. Thought he might have been a little deep on it. Was that the case or --
KENNY PICKETT: No, no, Jaylen's fine. I've got to get him the ball. I think I got stepped on a little bit. I've got to look at my footwork and see what happened. But the pitch has to be out front and definitely a lot more catchable. That's on me.
Q. Kenny, were you trying to throw the last one away on the sideline?
KENNY PICKETT: Yeah, I wanted it higher than that, definitely. Either Pat was going to get it or it was going to be out of bounds. I didn't put it high enough. I cannot throw an interception there in that point of the game. Obviously we were moving the ball well.
Want to be aggressive but at the same time the clock was our friend there and I wanted to possess the ball and not do that and give them good field position. So I can't do that mistake.
Q. The result is what mattered but being out there, getting those couple of touchdowns, take us through the emotions when you scored those.
KENNY PICKETT: I know, guys, a lot of emotions, but the only thing I'm thinking about is winning out there. I was kind of staying in tune with the game and what we needed to do to come out with the win and that didn't happen. So it's something I definitely need to learn from quickly and get a fix for whenever my next opportunity may come.
Q. Any inclination that you possibly could go into this game or things --
KENNY PICKETT: No, I was never told that. Just Coach came in at halftime and said I was going. So just kind of put all the preparation and prepare like the starter. I spent a lot of time at the facility to get ready. I felt pretty good while I was in there.
Q. What's your preparation been like these last couple of weeks?
KENNY PICKETT: Like I'm a starter minus the reps. You don't get a lot of reps, but that's why I have to be tuned in really mentally, go through every single read that Mitch was getting in practice, in game, watch the film as if I'm the one playing so I could be prepared if my opportunity did come, which it did today. Definitely a great learning process that I was being able to be a part of to help prepare me for today.
Q. You know the fans have been behind you since draft day, but still to hear their reaction, what did you think of that?
KENNY PICKETT: It was great. The fans are passionate. They want to win and no one wants to win more than us. We put a lot of work in. We have to come out with a win there. Something that we need to learn from, like I said, quickly, and get back on track.
Q. The reaction for you personally, the reaction to you personally when you went in?
KENNY PICKETT: Like I said, it's great. I really appreciate all the support. But, like I said, I've got to go play a game. Definitely I didn't spend too much time on it. I thought that we picked it up in the second half there and had the ball moving but the turnovers killed us. And that's on me. I've got to get that right quickly.
Q. What have you been told and what do you expect for next week?
KENNY PICKETT: Haven't been told anything. We just lost. Didn't have a chance to talk to anyone.
Q. Mike Tomlin said he made the switch to you because he wanted to give the team a spark. Did you feel you gave them a spark and could you sense that?
KENNY PICKETT: I just play with an edge. That's something that I wanted to bring to the table. I do not like to lose. This is not a good feeling. I don't want it to be a familiar feeling so I definitely want to get back out there and get a victory, get us back on track.
So I think a little bit of an edge to me. I want that to rub off on everybody. I want us to be have an attitude when it's out there on the field. I'm excited to get back to work get us back on track.
Q. You didn't get a lot of reps with Pickens in the preseason. What do you feel about the chemistry on the field?
KENNY PICKETT: Any rep I can steal with George, I try to get one on the side, or Diontae. Any of the guys. The ones I really never got a chance to do a lot with, anything I could I would try to steal on the side. Or the couple of reps I got today, I really want to take advantage of those and treat those like game reps so when the time came I would be ready. I think all that definitely paid off with some of the timing stuff we were doing.
Q. Obviously Mitch was disappointed for the switch to happen, but what was the dynamic like with him on the sideline in the second half?
KENNY PICKETT: It was great. Communication was great. Just trying to help me out, just the way I was helping him out. He's a great guy. And definitely glad that he's on our team and I have him as a teammate.
Q. Do you feel like the whole offense was on the table, the whole game plan when you came in, available?
KENNY PICKETT: I told Coach I was prepared. I knew every call in the plan. I told him, don't change up just because I'm in there. Let's let it rip and see what happens. I was prepared.
Definitely didn't want to handcuff us in any situation. I wanted Coach to call the game. He called a great game. Like I said, the plays were there. We made plays, but the turnovers killed us. It's definitely on me and I have to improve.
Q. The first ball (indiscernible), how did you feel about the first ball to Claypool?
KENNY PICKETT: Listen, I told those guys, if they're one-on-one, I'm going to give them a chance. We all feel really good about that receiver room and how talented every guy in there is. Chase on the safety, I'm going to take that and give him a chance.
The ball -- sometimes the ball doesn't bounce your way. That time it didn't. I get that. But he said he's going to go get it. I told him I'm going to throw him more passes. I'm not gun shy to throw down the field to him at all. Definitely want to work the continuity as soon as possible.
Q. There was a play where I think you approached the line but you were talking to the guys and you hit Pickens on the left sideline in the third quarter. Was that a hot route or full audible? What was that?
KENNY PICKETT: No, I just wanted to get the protection right so I had time to get it off. I knew where I wanted it to go. I knew I had George one-on-one. I wanted to slot the line left. I would drift a little bit. Jaylen would come across and pick up on the (indiscernible) scrimmage. I knew I had enough time to get it off. It's a fade, three step, I'll get it up and down. Definitely a good play that got us in the position we wanted to be, but didn't -- the outcome wasn't what we wanted.
Q. The pass down the middle to Freiermuth, when the big guy was in your face, talk about that play.
KENNY PICKETT: Listen, third down. 88 does a great job. It was a little similar to the Jacksonville play, I felt like, in preseason. Trusted him he was going to be where he was, and he ran a great route. I wanted to give him a chance. And our line did a great job, I thought, all day. That group has improved tremendously.
I think they're definitely the strength of our offense right now and we're kind of taking their lead.
Q. How tough is it to stand in there when that guy's bearing down on you?
KENNY PICKETT: It's not tough. It's in the job description. It is what it is. I'm a quarterback. That's in my job. So I told those guys, I'll stand in there, I don't really care. I know they'll get it right. My job is to stand in there and make those.
Q. Zero coverage on the sideline ball to Pickens, the last possession, I think it was third down, one-on-one down the left side line?
KENNY PICKETT: The one we talked about earlier where I changed the protection?
Q. I didn't think you changed it there, but --
KENNY PICKETT: I knew I was getting pressure. I thought it was one high. I have to look at it again. I felt it was one high. They were bringing a lot of pressure. Had press in the slot. I left George in that one-on-one situation. So I just wanted to give him an opportunity.
Q. Two rushing touchdowns, picked up the big first down on the scramble. How do you feel you're confident in your ability to affect the game running the ball at this level?
KENNY PICKETT: Yeah, I am. Obviously I'm not going to rip off 60-yard runs, but that's something I think that if they'll drop underneath a lot of things, give me some running lanes I can use my legs and get first downs. In the red zone it adds another element.
That was a play we had dialed up, I think more towards the middle of the field. But we asked about, when we get down there again, what kind of plays I like. I put that one up first because I could either throw it to Pat or take off running. Three-way. Or give it to Naj. Plenty of options. I like to have options down there and definitely use my athleticism as one of them.
Q. What do you think you're able to prove to your teammates, and how important is it to get that first opportunity kind of behind you here?
KENNY PICKETT: Like I said, I wanted to win more than anything. So I don't know what I proved to anybody. But we didn't win. That's one thing we didn't do. That's my only focus.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports