The Pittsburgh Steelers have a quarterback conundrum on their hands, and the resolution remains elusive. Kenny Pickett is entering his third season, seemingly under fire from every angle. They’re kicking the tires on Russell Wilson, but they’ve long stated interest in Mason Rudolph.
Some fear that re-signing Rudolph is bad for the locker room because they worry it will create division. These fears are fueled by questionable, if not spurious, reports about players picking sides. Wherever the truth may lie, general manager Omar Khan does not worry about the effect of competition in their culture.
“I just think competition is good. Regardless of what you do in life, I just think having competition, assuming you embrace it, it’s good”, he told Richie Walsh on Thursday for KDKA on CBS Pittsburgh. “It makes you better”.
“I think the guys that we have in the locker room understand that and understand that we’re just trying to get to a Super Bowl,” he added, responding to potential concerns about Rudolph and Pickett competing fostering division. “By whatever means that is, we’re all working towards the same goal.”
Rudolph, for his part, has consistently met professional standards. He’s had the backs of his teammates, and they returned the favor last year. The locker room certainly likes him, but they like Pickett, too. They just want the offense to be more efficient.
The reality is that none of us know exactly what it all looks like under the new offensive coordinator, Arthur Smith. The players don’t know that yet, either, whether Pickett or Rudolph is at quarterback. They must see how it plays out and how the quarterbacks play within the system. At least in the infancy stages, though, Khan likes how the principles fit with Pickett, the only quarterback under contract.
“I have a lot of confidence in Kenny, but every position, including the quarterback position, should always have competition,” he added. “You can’t ever have [too many good players] in a specific position group, and that applies to the quarterback position.” The Steelers want to bring Rudolph back into the mix as one of those good players.
Of course, former general manager Kevin Colbert didn’t say these things with Ben Roethlisberger in his prime. These are broad, sweeping statements they make that we know are not true. Nobody is seriously challenging T.J. Watt in a meaningful way. Nobody is challenging Minkah Fitzpatrick. Not on a practice field, anyway.
But for an unproven player like Pickett? Yeah, sure. He needs competition. And it might as well include Rudolph. Who cares how the locker room initially responds to that? Let the best player win, and whoever produces, the team rallies around. That’s how this always works; that’s what sport is all about. The only potential source for animosity is if Pickett significantly struggles and they refuse to make a change. But I don’t see them being that stubborn, nor do any of those reporters covering the team.
