The Steelers are now back at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, facing down a long regular season that looks a lot more promising given how things have gone leading up to it. Finishing just above .500 last year, they anticipate being able to compete with any team in the league this season with second-year QB Kenny Pickett leading the way.
They’ve done a great deal to address what they identified as their shortcomings during the offseason, which included addressing the offensive and defensive lines as well as the secondary and the inside linebacker room, which is nearly entirely different from last year. The results have been positive so far.
Even well into the regular season and beyond, there are going to be plenty of questions that need answered. When will the core rookies get to play, or even start? Is the depth sufficient where they upgraded? Can they stand toe-to-toe with the Bengals and the other top teams in the league? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout the season, as we have for many years.
Question: Are the Steelers in for an optics dilemma at quarterback this week?
So your third-string quarterback just plays the best game your team has managed in years. But your “franchise” quarterback is on the mend and ready to return to play with the season on the line—as slim as your playoff chances may be.
What do you do, when that franchise quarterback hasn’t really earned that distinction? If Kenny Pickett’s ankle is healthy enough to get back into the starting lineup next week, that is the situation head coach Mike Tomlin will be facing.
After throwing for 290 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, Mason Rudolph earned his long-sought-for redemption last night against the Cincinnati Bengals. He had easily the best game any Steelers quarterback has had this year, perhaps the past two years if not more (though we can’t ignore WR George Pickens’ yards after the catch playing a critical role).
The team may be quietly rooting against Pickett’s ankle this week, hoping that they can make the argument that he’s not quite healthy enough yet to play because he won’t sufficiently be able to protect himself in the pocket.
That would allow Rudolph to start another game and perhaps provide more clarity going forward. If he struggles in his second start, then you can safely make the switch back to your franchise guy. If he balls out again, then you can make a stronger case for riding the hot hand.
Yet in the bigger picture, your primary objective is learning what you’ve got in Pickett, right? You want to see him on the field these last two games if you can so you can learn a little bit more before you hire a new offensive coordinator.
If you don’t start the guy who drafted to be your franchise quarterback when he’s deemed healthy enough, that’s a bad look. It promotes the appearance of failure. Yet if you bench the guy who just quarterbacked your best game in years, that looks bad too. Especially if Pickett starts and struggles, and looks less than mobile because of his injury.
