Following another poor showing from quarterback Mitch Trubisky that resulted in him being benched Saturday against the Indianapolis Colts, the Pittsburgh Steelers are making a change at quarterback.
Head coach Mike Tomlin announced Monday during his weekly press conference ahead of the Week 16 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium that backup quarterback Mason Rudolph will start.
“As I stand here today, Mason Rudolph is the guy with the ball,” Tomlin said regarding a change at quarterback following a third straight loss, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page.
However, Tomlin did not rule out second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett returning from an ankle injury he suffered three week ago against the Arizona Cardinals, leading to an ankle procedure to try and speed up the recovery process.
Rudolph will become the third starting quarterback of the season for the Steelers, if Pickett — whom Tomlin labeled as questionable for Saturday — is unable to get back into the lineup.
“Rudolph man, he’s been a part of our program. He knows us, we know him. He’s tough-minded. He’s got a lot of confidence in himself,” Tomlin added regarding the decision to turn to Rudolph. “He’s a competitor and so those are some of the things that are really attractive about giving him an opportunity.”
The Steelers brought back Rudolph on a one-year deal in the offseason in mid-May, surprising many after it seemed as though the pairing between quarterback and franchise that drafted him in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft was over.
The decision to make the change from Trubisky to Rudolph came after the Steelers pulled Trubisky Saturday following a second interception in the loss to the Colts. It was the third interception in the last two games for Trubisky, who had looked rather poor as the starter in recent weeks.
When it comes to Rudolph, Tomlin called the veteran quarterback a “calculated risk taker,” which is something that the 7-7 Steelers need moving forward, something they weren’t getting from Trubisky as he was turning the football over.
“He’s good under tough circumstances. He’s a competitor. He’s a calculated risk taker,” Tomlin said regarding Rudolph. “I believe that mentality is helpful to us under these circumstances.”
Rudolph, like Trubisky, is an experienced starter, having started 10 games for the Steelers in his career. He’s 5-4-1 as a starter and last started in 2021 against the Detroit Lions at home in a 16-16 tie.
Now, he’ll get another shot, this time against a familiar foe in the Bengals. Rudolph is 2-0 against the Bengals in his career, beating them 27-3 in 2019 and then 16-10 later that season. He was 24-of-28 for 229 yards and two touchdowns against the Bengals in the 27-3 win but was then pulled for Duck Hodges in the 16-10 win later that season.
