The Pittsburgh Steelers signed former Ole Miss and UCF QB John Rhys Plumlee to a team-record contract as an undrafted free agent, and while that should’ve been a signal he would suit up at the game’s most important position, Plumlee confirmed he would play quarterback. In an interview with Brian Batko on his Chipped Ham and Football podcast, Plumlee said it’s been “communicated” to him that he’s going to be a quarterback in Pittsburgh.
“I’m super excited about that, it’s always been what I’ve wanted to do, and super excited that I have the opportunity to do that,” he said.
It’s not a short-sighted decision by the Steelers. They kept in contact with Plumlee throughout the pre-draft process, including holding a Zoom meeting with Plumlee, he told Batko. That Zoom included Mike Tomlin, Omar Khan, Arthur Smith and Tom Arth, so the Steelers had a lot of key stakeholders involved in getting to know Plumlee. That led them to feel comfortable signing him and made him feel as if the Steelers were one of the best fits for him as he explored the undrafted free agency process.
Plumlee said he’s heard the comparisons to players like Taysom Hill, a college quarterback who also gets some carries and plays tight end in the NFL, as Plumlee was tabbed a potential candidate to move to receiver. While he said he takes those comparisons as a compliment, he knows that he’s a quarterback and thinks he can wind up being a good one in the league.
“I love pursuing quarterback. I feel like I am a quarterback and have an opportunity to be a really, really good quarterback,” Plumlee said.
As it stands now, Plumlee will work as the fourth quarterback on the depth chart behind Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Kyle Allen. Plumlee will have an opportunity to learn from all three, as all of them have starting experience in the NFL and Fields can use his legs similarly well to Plumlee at the quarterback position.
Plumlee was a dual-sport athlete, also playing baseball in college, and that’s definitely something that adds to his athletic profile and can help him on the football field. Plumlee will face some competition at rookie minicamp this weekend from Benedict College QB Aeneas Dennis and potentially Dayton QB Cole Dow, who may actually line up at receiver as some speculated that Plumlee would.
Plumlee’s an intriguing prospect with some upside and versatility due to his athleticism, and it’ll be interesting to see how long he can stick around in Pittsburgh. While he looks like a strong practice squad candidate right now, there’s always the chance he really impresses throughout the offseason and into the preseason and take Pittsburgh’s No. 3 quarterback role away from Kyle Allen. Plumlee is a player I’m really excited to see this offseason and his sheer athleticism should make him a fun player to watch. If he can put it all together with his arm talent as well, he could wind up being a steal as a UDFA.
