Mason Rudolph looked the part of a top NFL backup last week, but his second preseason outing started with a thud. On just the Steelers’ second offensive snap, he threw a costly interception that set up a quick 7-0 deficit.
Rudolph explained what went wrong with the interception after the game.
“DB made a good play. I was a little bit late to the seam and he just overlapped in cover three and made a good play,” Rudolph said via the Steelers’ YouTube. “I gotta either be quicker to the seam or check the ball down.”
Here is a clip of that play via NFL on X.
Rudolph didn’t hesitate much, but there was a brief pause before stepping into his deep throw intended for Roman Wilson. He beat the safety coming over the top, but CB Zyon McCollum made a great play to undercut the route.
Pittsburgh was aggressive with that same combination of Rudolph and Wilson last week, but this week, it ended in an early-game disaster.
The next drive was a quick three-and-out with two unsuccessful runs to Kenneth Gainwell, but Rudolph managed to bounce back on his third drive with a three-play, 63-yard touchdown drive.
“That happens in the course of a year, in the course of games, even early in the games. You gotta mentally recover from that and go back out,” Rudolph said. “I was happy with the way we moved the ball down the field. Roman [Wilson] on the chunk play to get us in the score zone and we finished it off.”
Despite a bad result on his first deep target to Wilson, he went back to him deep the first chance he got. It paid off with a 42-yard completion.
If 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers gets hurt for a game or two this season, the Steelers are in good hands with a veteran Mason Rudolph leading the way.
