We hardly knew ye, Mason Rudolph. Or perhaps we knew ye too well, and for too long. The longest-serving member of the offense for the Pittsburgh Steelers along with T Chukwuma Okorafor, the sixth-year veteran could be in the starting lineup at quarterback on Saturday following yesterday’s events.
Head coach Mike Tomlin decided to bench Mitch Trubisky in the late stages after continuing to struggle, having thrown his second interception in helping accelerate the Steelers’ late-season tailspin. Rudolph didn’t do anything when he got into the game, either, but he didn’t have much chance. Will he?
“I would love to play for this team”, he told reporters after the game, according to Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “We will see [about starting]. That’s a coaching decision. The game just ended. So, we will see what happens. That’s out of my hands”.
Spending the vast majority of the season as the third quarterback behind Kenny Pickett and Trubisky, Rudolph had very little practice time with live reps until recently. He has been the No. 2 since Pickett’s ankle injury, but it would hardly be surprising if we hear reports about him splitting reps with Trubisky this week.
Even if their quest for a postseason berth feels all but statistically nerfed, the Steelers can’t go out there and just give up, at least no more than they already have. One can argue that Trubisky has already shown enough that he cannot be trusted to be part of the solution—not surprising when you throw five interceptions in 107 pass attempts.
A third-round pick in 2018, Rudolph’s most extensive experience came in 2019 after Ben Roethlisberger suffered a season-ending elbow injury. He started eight games that year, being benched once in between, but there was some good ball in there at one point—largely before he suffered a concussion against the Baltimore Ravens.
His last game prior to yesterday came in 2021, a relief appearance in which he completed five of eight pass attempts for 35 yards with one 17-yard rush. He made one start earlier that season, going 30-for-50 for 242 yards with one touchdown and one interception in a losing effort to a bad Detroit Lions team.
Quite likely the principal reason Rudolph hasn’t been given much consideration in Pittsburgh lately is the fact that, well, the Steelers have seen what he can do for half a decade already, and it wasn’t all that much. But given what their alternatives are right now, it seems everyone is in favor of it, including me. What could it hurt at this point?
“I am confident in the way I’ve stayed sharp all season, and this isn’t my rookie year”, he told reporters, according to Adamski. “The staff always puts a good plan together, so if I get the nod I’ll be ready to roll”.
Up next are the Cincinnati Bengals, who suddenly have a better record than the 7-7 Steelers. Cincinnati just so happens to be the last team they managed to beat, in Jake Browning’s first NFL start. Four games later, he looks much better and much more comfortable.
