The Pittsburgh Steelers have been searching for a successor to Ben Roethlisberger since he retired after the 2021 season. Justin Fields looks like the most promising option at this point, but it’s only been three games, and anything can change. Not too long ago, Mason Rudolph looked like the possible heir to Roethlisberger, but those dreams died after he struggled during the 2019 season. Former Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey recently explained how much different it was playing with Rudolph that year.
“Rudolph came in the one year, and I’ve been so grateful for [Roethlisberger] my whole entire career,” Pouncey said during a recent appearance on Footbahlin’ with Ben Roethlisberger. “Then [Rudolph] gets in, we had a phenomenal season, don’t get me wrong, but it was always that moment like, ‘Why is he holding the ball this long? Why ain’t the ball out right here? Why ain’t we make this play down the field?'”
Pouncey was drafted in 2010, so he never really had any long-term exposure to playing in the NFL with a quarterback other than Roethlisberger. Even during the small stretches when the franchise quarterback was hurt, the Steelers usually had a veteran like Charlie Batch as the backup. 2019 was the first year Pouncey really got a taste of what life without Roethlisberger would be like.
Rudolph did not look great during that year, either. He went back and forth at the starting position with Devlin Hodges, and the Steelers barely avoided a losing season. That didn’t seem to stop Pouncey from defending Rudolph at all times, though.
During that same segment, Pouncey explained how Mike Tomlin would always try to tell him how blessed he was to play with a quarterback like Roethlisberger.
“I love all our backup quarterbacks, but [Tomlin] used to argue with me all the time. He was like, ‘I don’t think you understand. When you play with a franchise quarterback and a guy like Big Ben as a player, you walk into every single game. I’m telling y’all, I don’t think y’all understand the mental aspect that comes with that. You walk in there every single game, you think you’re gonna win a football game'”
During Pouncey’s first season, the Steelers lost the Super Bowl to the Green Bay Packers. He also got to experience Roethlisberger in his prime, not when he was younger and more reliant on a good running game. Therefore, it makes sense that he would just be used to winning. Until that 2019 season, he walked into every year believing the Steelers could return to the Super Bowl.
That ended up not being the case, though. The Steelers would, unfortunately, never make another Super Bowl with Pouncey on the roster. It’s one of Tomlin’s biggest regrets as a coach.
Pouncey explained that, once he played some games with Rudolph, he called Tomlin to explain that he finally understood what he had been telling Pouncey.
“When [Rudolph] got in there, I called [Tomlin] after like three, four games. I promise you I can’t make this stuff up. I say, I promise you all them years I’ve been arguing with you, I’m sorry.”
That’s both a very funny and sad story. It’s easy to laugh about now, but Pouncey probably felt awful in the moment. Rudolph wasn’t getting the job done, and it looked like the season would be a wash for the Steelers. Just as well, Pouncey retired after the following season, so he probably felt bad that one of his last seasons wouldn’t involve a push for a championship.
Rudolph ended up redeeming himself last year, coming in late in the year to help carry the Steelers to the playoffs. He’s put together a decent NFL career. He might not be Roethlisberger, but then again, not many quarterbacks are. It wasn’t the best season for the Steelers, but it did teach Pouncey to truly appreciate Tomlin’s words.
Despite not winning a Super Bowl, Pouncey still had a fantastic career. He should make a push for the Pro Football Hall of Fame one day. Maybe he and Roethlisberger can reunite in Canton, Ohio, and talk more about how much they appreciate each other. At some point, Tomlin will likely join them, and they can all laugh about how long it took for his words to ring true with Pouncey.
