Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan has made it clear that he would like QB Mason Rudolph back in the fold for the 2024 season. He even said on Thursday that he’s had discussions with Rudolph’s people. Would Rudolph want to come back, and would he actually be allowed to compete for the starting job against Kenny Pickett?
Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette talked with Joe Starkey and Paul Zeise on 93.7 The Fan Friday about all things Steelers. The three discussed the likelihood of Rudolph returning, and Fittipaldo talked about if the Steelers would be willing to turn to Rudolph should Pickett falter as QB1.
“They’ll do what’s best for this team,” Fittipaldo said. “They did what’s best for this football team with a week to go in the regular season. Kenny Pickett was healthy enough to return, I think he thought he was going to return, but they stuck with the hot hand. They did what was best for the Steelers football team then. And I think in the future if Mason Rudolph beats out Kenny Pickett or if Kenny Pickett has a bad start to the season, I don’t think there would be any hesitation to go to Rudolph if he’s on the roster in 2024.”
The Steelers did not show that confidence in Rudolph last season after Pickett sprained his ankle in early December. They first turned to Mitch Trubisky and did not give Rudolph a chance until Trubisky failed badly against the Indianapolis Colts. Rudolph responded immediately and helped engineer a three-game winning streak. To kick off that streak, Rudolph led the offense to back-to-back weeks of 30 or more points, a mark that the Steelers had not hit previously in 2023.
Perhaps that performance at the end of the season is exactly what the Steelers needed to see from Rudolph. It apparently won over some people in the front office and the locker room, per multiple reports. One report from Tim Benz of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review highlighted that there are those among the team’s wide receivers who prefer Rudolph over Pickett.
If the Steelers do re-sign Rudolph this offseason, the quarterback competition in training camp could take on a whole new dimension. There are those who still believe in Pickett, but there are also those who prefer Rudolph and want to see him given a real chance to start. If Pickett struggles at any point, those calls for Rudolph will be much harder to ignore after his performance at the end of 2023.
