Steelers Quarterback Quandary
The Pittsburgh Steelers spent a first round draft pick on quarterback Kenny Pickett in the 2022 NFL Draft. In the 2018 draft, they selected Mason Rudolph in the third round. And, in the 2017 draft, Mitch Trubisky was drafted second overall. These three quarterbacks are on the current team roster. Based on the recent play of Mason Rudolph, the Steelers quarterback quandary is quite unclear now.
Mason Rudolph
Mason Rudolph entered the starting lineup two weeks ago, and he has revived an offense that sputtered through the entire season. He is in his sixth season with the Steelers. For the past two seasons, he has been demoted to third string, and sometimes he didn’t even dress for some games.
When the Steelers drafted him, I was excited. I thought for sure he was the heir apparent to Ben Roethlisberger. Unfortunately, Ben was threatened by him and wouldn’t tutor him. So, Rudolph had to go it alone. Head coach Mike Tomlin buried him on the roster and wouldn’t give him a chance until he had no choice. Tomlin looks like an idiot now for doing that.
Now, Mason Rudolph is the future quarterback of the Steelers. The wins and the statistics tell the tale. If Tomlin goes back to another quarterback, he will be crucified.
Kenny Pickett
Kenny Pickett had over twenty NFL games with the Steelers to show his quarterback skills. Unfortunately, his performance was up and down. But, it was mostly down. Pickett has a lot to learn. I don’t think he was ready to be the starting quarterback, but they had no choice (except for Rudolph who sat in the dog house).
Pickett has “the yips.” That means he bails as soon as the defense puts pressure on him. Also, he has a tendency to turn into oncoming defenders and take a sack. And, he is injury prone because of his lanky build. The Steelers need to keep Pickett on the roster and let him learn behind Rudolph. Perhaps in a couple more years, he will be ready to break out like Rudolph. Quarterbacks take time to develop in the NFL.
Mitch Trubisky
Mitch Trubisky will go down as one of the worst free agent signings in Steelers history. He seems like a nice guy, but he has limited ability as a quarterback. His contract is up after this season and he will surely move on. I predict that his football career may be over.
This one is on Tomlin and Kevin Colbert, the former General Manager. You need to do homework on these guys. Especially quarterbacks. You can’t sign a player just because he was semi-successful somewhere else. He has to fit in your system. You have to look at tangibles just as much as the intangibles. This was an epic fail.
Conclusion
After being buried on the Steelers roster for years, Mason Rudolph has proven that he should be given every opportunity to continue to be the starting quarterback for the Steelers. Pickett needs to watch and learn for the next couple of years. It would help if he could bulk up some too.
Another former Steelers quarterback named Josh Dobbs was buried on the roster. He went on to play very well this season with the Arizona Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings. It makes me wonder about Tomlin’s ability to evaluate quarterbacks.
Whether Tomlin likes it or not, he has to stick with Rudolph going forward. Or, the fans will let him have it. At least, he finally gave Rudolph a chance.
Final Note
The quandary gets uglier because Rudolph is a free agent at the end of the season. That means the Steelers are going to have to pay up or Rudolph will be playing elsewhere next season.
Spoiler alert: There is really no quandary. Mason Rudolph is the quarterback of the future for the Steelers.
