Kenny Pickett’s small hands send the Internet into a frenzy
Mar 3, 2022, 10:42 AM | Updated: 10:48 am
It’s measurement season.
One of the staples of the NFL Combine is college prospects having their bodies overanalyzed, including the size of their hands.
This is particularly crucial for quarterbacks, as gripping the football is indeed a pretty important part of the position.
That’s why on Wednesday morning when potential first-round QB (and Denver Broncos target?) Kenny Pickett had his hands measured, Twitter freaked out.
Pickett’s hands were small. Very small, by NFL standards.
The Pitt product’s hands measured at just 8.5 inches. For perspective, Dak Prescott’s hands came in at 10.88 inches in 2016. It’s rare to see a QB’s hands measure smaller than 9 inches and that’s still below average. The two most notable QBs in NFL history with hands of 8.5 inches were Michael Vick and Jeff Blake.
The NFL dominates the sports news cycle 24/7, but it was still interesting to see how many people had a take on Kenny Pickett’s small hands. A handful were serious, but a ton were sarcastic.
Not sure why everyone is freaking about Kenny Pickett's hand size. Lionel Messi's hands aren't even 8.5 and he's one of the greatest athletes the world has ever seen.
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) March 3, 2022
Kenny Pickett showing up to interviews with NFL teams pic.twitter.com/lvVWhx70SJ
— Craig Meyer (@CraigMeyerPG) March 3, 2022
Kenny Pickett right now: pic.twitter.com/lReX5xtkMw
— theScore (@theScore) March 3, 2022
Kenny Pickett’s hands are way too small for him to play in a cold weather NFL city like Pittsburgh.
— Ross Tucker (@RossTuckerNFL) March 3, 2022
Just two years ago at the NFL Combine, Joe Burrow’s hands came in at only nine inches. He, of course, just led the Bengals on a magical playoff run and to the Super Bowl.
Pickett did fumble the ball 26 times in his collegiate career, but that could be a product of poor protection and not his small hands.
Regardless, if the Broncos can trade back in the first round, acquire additional picks and still draft Pickett, it’s probably worth a shot. Maybe his small hands will end up being a big break for Denver.
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