Two-time Super Bowl champion compares Steelers' Kenny Pickett to Tom Brady

Former Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback and two-time Super Bowl champion Ike Taylor sees a little bit of Tom Brady in second-year Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett. 

"As a fan, as a scout, as a former player, I'm looking for someone like Kenny," Taylor said on the latest edition of the "Bleav in Steelers" podcast, per Noah Strackbein of FanNation's All Steelers. "Kenny don't come around too often in the fourth quarter, and the one thing that we do know about Kenny, if you need a drive late in the game, Kenny gonna wake up, and that's hard to find."

Much has been made throughout this fall about Pickett not making a significant positive leap during his sophomore pro campaign, but head coach Mike Tomlin praised the 25-year-old last month for "his ability to rise up in moments" and "his ability to make the plays that he makes when it really gets thick." Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review mentioned Tuesday that Pickett recorded fourth-quarter comebacks this season against the Baltimore Ravens, Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans. 

"For me, Kenny is the perfect fit for the Pittsburgh Steelers," Taylor continued during his comments. "They can say what they wanna say about what a prototypical quarterback should look like and all the traits that they need to have. Man, give me that Tom Brady trait! And I'm not saying that Kenny is even close to Tom; I'm just saying a trait, and I know with three-and-a-half to two minutes left, and the game is close, Kenny gonna close out the game. He's gonna make that drive, and he's gonna put some points on the board."

Tomlin likely would prefer for Pickett to be more Brady-like across all four quarters of games. According to ESPN stats, Pickett enters Week 11 ranked 28th in the NFL among qualified players with a 36.3 adjusted QBR, 25th with an 81.1 passer rating and 30th with a 61.3% completion percentage on the season. He tossed six touchdown passes and four interceptions over Pittsburgh's first nine games. 

The 6-3 Steelers next play at a 6-3 Cleveland Browns side that's now without injured starting signal-caller Deshaun Watson until next summer. As of early Thursday afternoon, oddschecker listed Pittsburgh as a one-point underdog for that massive divisional clash.