For Mike Tomlin, QB Mitch Trubisky was the Pittsburgh Steelers’ guy. For better or worse.
The outcome? Worse. Far worse.
Speaking to reporters during his postgame press conference, Tomlin confirmed he never considered benching a struggling Trubisky for Rudolph.
“I didn’t,” Tomlin said when asked if he thought about making a swap.
Trubisky finished the game 21-of-34 for 169 yards with one touchdown and one interception. True to his style, he took deep shots and played aggressively, including a 4th and 2 heave for WR Diontae Johnson ahead of the two-minute warning. It fell incomplete and essentially ended the team’s chances of coming back. On that drive, Trubisky consistently missed and took downfield throws when Pittsburgh needed only a couple of yards to move the sticks.
His lone touchdown was the result of a better grab by Johnson than it was a tremendous throw by Trubisky. Though Trubisky’s pass led Johnson away from the defender, it still took a fantastic reaching grab by Johnson to haul it in.
Trubisky wilted on third down, couldn’t put points on the board with four downs that left the score 21-10, and he ran himself out of the pocket, throwing off his back foot multiple times. His interception was a costly one, throwing in the middle of four Patriots defenders and picked by S Jabrill Peppers. Perhaps TE Pat Freiermuth slowed up on his route but it was a pass not worth testing considering the Steelers’ history when they turn the ball over. Fans chanted Rudolph’s name, urging the Steelers to put him in the game but to no avail.
Speaking to Steelers.com’s Bob Labriola during their weekly gameday conversation, Tomlin seemed to hint he would only play Rudolph if he had to, citing a lack of in-game reps, him not throwing a regular-season pass since the 2021 season.
“When pressed, but it’s not ideal, because of the lack of in-helmet perspective on the work,” when asked by Labriola if Rudolph was an option to play.
For Pittsburgh, its season was on the line tonight. Not literally so but after dropping games to the Arizona Cardinals and New England Patriots in a span of four days, the Steelers are now 7-6 and spending a long weekend watching the AFC take care of their business. The Steelers knew what this game meant. Tomlin knew what this game meant. And he stuck by Trubisky. In a sense, the captain going down with the ship. And now Pittsburgh is sunk.
