The final week of the regular season will begin with the Ravens and Steelers facing each other. While the former team has clinched the top seed in the AFC, the latter enters the contest with their playoff hopes on the line. 
Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett is in better shape from a health perspective than he was last week as he continues to recover from ankle surgery, head coach Mike Tomlin said on Monday. In spite of that, he announced that Mason Rudolph will start once again on Saturday. The upcoming game will mark Rudolph’s third consecutive start.
When Pickett when down with an ankle injury which required a procedure, Mitch Trubisky took over on offense. The latter’s struggles led to Rudolph taking over midway through the Steelers’ loss to the Colts, however, and he was given the nod for Week 16. The 28-year-old impressed in Pittsburgh’s win over Cincinnati, meaning that Pickett’s return to practice was insufficient to make another QB change the following week.
Rudolph and the Steelers’ offense delivered a strong showing on Sunday in Seattle, leading the team to a 30-23 victory and improving their record to 9-7. An AFC wild-card berth is still in play as a result, making Tomlin’s decision under center a crucial one. Pickett will be able to practice more in the coming days than he did last week, and as such he will likely be able to dress for the regular season finale. As things stand now, though, he will not be counted on in a must-win game.
With the Ravens having locked up the No. 1 seed, the strong possibility exists they will rest a number of key starters on Saturday. While that would help the Steelers’ playoff push, they will require a win and help from at least one other result to secure a postseason berth. A pending free agent, Rudolph could help not only Pittsburgh’s short-term prospects but also his financial outlook for the offseason by continuing his strong play in Week 18.
It’s the right move. The Steelers offense is clearly responding to Rudolph and you can see it in their all around play. The only real question is if the Steelers can resign him for next year and hand him the keys until they draft and develop a real replacement.
Right move
Why on Earth wouldn’t they? Talk about a worthless article. LMAO. The only question would be, What took them so long to dump Trubisky to irrelevant status.
Rudolph should have been starting for the Steelers for the past two seasons.
The Steelers never really gave him a chance ever since Big Ben whined and pouted and never helped him when he was drafted.
More like bapthearmchairyinzer.
Exactly right. Roethlisberger had a great career here but was a prima Donna. He all but shunned Rudolph
Meanwhile, Pickett should become familiar with the story of Wally Pipp. He had 23 starts to prove himself and showed nothing. I can imagine the entire locker room—especially the receivers—are glad he’s on the bench
Win or lose, let Rudolph battle Pickett in training camp next season, that is, if Rudolph re-signs here. Reminds me of an old Robbie Benson movie, “Fast Break,” where the kid in the doghouse finally gets his shot, excels and then tells the coach to stuff it. Couldn’t blame Rudolph
That it took all this time for the coaching staff to recognize they had two stiffs competing ahead of Rudolph for the starting job is outrageous. Stubborn morons
Rudolph resigned here because no one else was interested in him.
He caught a break and I’m happy he’s doing so well.
You calling Ben R. a prima donna is you disliking him personally with your armchair yinzer opinion.
Forum. Message board. It’s ALL opinion. It’s ALL armchair quarterbacking.
Roethlisberger had a great career here. Happy now?
As for “yinzer,” yeah, born and raised here. Shame that seems to bother you
The same WR that can’t catch the ball or ran wrong routes. May as well add in the Center whose every 3rd snap was at Kenny’s toes.
I am a Mason fan & think he got thrown to the wolves long before he was ready.
But if you say Kenny had his chance than you need to keep that same energy in regards to Rudolph because unless you lived under a rock he was horrible when he was given a chance.
Pickett is the better talent and I am tired of hearing people that obviously don’t know football bad mouthing the kid.
He had 1 game & 1 half without Canada’s dumbass in his ear. The first game he shined the next the whole team sucked & the offense came out & admitted they overlooked the Cards.
Not firing Canada last year is the biggest disaster
Obviously don’t know football? Seriously?
I followed Pickett’s progression at Pitt and watched him evolve each year
I applauded the selection of the Steelers
I was heartened by his pre-season play this year
Truth is, yeah, he had his opportunities and he’s not the answer. He’s jittery in the pocket and subpar with his reads and often has tunnel vision. More than anything else, he lacks arm strength
Canada was out of his element here but Tomlin had oversight. There was a reason Pickett wasn’t having the play calls downfield as Rudolph now is.
I’d wager that the receiver room would say the same.
I have to laugh at the “obviously don’t know football” comment that later blends into a digression about the OC.
Trubisky. Trey Lance. A whole host of Cleveland 1st round QB’s. Pickett is just another first round mistake
Pains me to say that. I was pulling for the kid. But he’s not the answer in anyone’s offense
Pickett may very well not be the answer at QB. But to totally neglect his 4th quarter success since he basically had gotten on the field is crazy.
There are so many other factors that he had to deal with that Mason in 2 games has not.
Pat Meyer got the credit for his input on the Seahawks win and the Oline and Najee easily had their best game of the season. Did their success not help in Rudolph’s success ?
I agree Mason has the better arm but Kenny could make every throw.
Also you neglect to mention why he may be skidish in the pocket. As bad as the line played in the beginning of the year. Basically all the way up until this game.
I have been a Rudolph fan and always believed he didn’t get a fair shake with Ben in the building. Ben never lifted a finger to help in his development which is sad because of the help Ben got throughout his career from back up & Tommy Maddox who lost his job to injury.
But I am also a Pickett fan as well and I don’t believe he has gotten a fair shake as well. He has not been put in the position to succeed.
I just refuse to write him off as I never written Mason off. I still believe Pickett has more talent & I just hope with a new OC they sign Mason & give the QBs the right chance to compete for the job.
I am just not so quick to kick Kenny down.
I salute you for sticking by Pickett. I did too, but 23 games were more than enough and for me, a couple 4th quarter comebacks against middling teams, at best, really didn’t impress me in the whole scheme of things
I’m not sold on Rudolph yet. He may come back to earth this week or if he decides to return next season, but I’ll take him over some of the names being bandied about below
I followed Rudolph at OK State and his ability to throw was never a question mark. I disagree with you about Pickett having the same ability, and Rudolph hits guys in stride, to boot
Agree wholeheartedly about the uphill climb Rudolph had here with the lack of help he got here with Roethlisberger. To my eyes, he’s settled down under fire where Pickett panics. He reads the defense and hits secondary receivers where Pickett will instead scramble and either throw it away or take a sack
Sorry, but Rudolph is playing with the same o-line and with the same play calls—with downfield throws added in. Clearly, the entire offense is playing with more passion under Rudolph’s leadership. And clearly, the ability of Rudolph to utilize the talents of Pickens and Johnson where Pickett couldn’t has made the Steelers offense multi dimensional and provided more opportunities for Harris and Warren
You say it’s the OC. Yeah, he was bad, but he wasn’t the big problem
This doesn’t make the Steelers Super Bowl contenders, of course. There are many holes here, starting with the o-line and it’s going to be an interesting off season and hopefully there are upgrades
Then allow these guys to battle it out in training camp
I feel the offense fits Rudolph’s strengths better than Kenny’s. Rudolph is a prototype pocket passer. Where Kenny is at his best rolling out which you never saw scripted with Canada.
I never said Kenny was on the same level of passer as Mason I just said Kenny can make all the throws needed to be successful. Mason can as well but can get the ball deeper over the top where Kenny has a better ability to leave the pocket which this day & age is important as well.
They are 2 different style QB’s & I am riding with both of them and it may very well be excuses on my part but I had the same excuses then for Rudolph when people were running him out of town and I have the same excuses now for Kenny.
Neither one has been put in the best situation to succeed. Both have had far more bad moments as good moments and if the Steelers decide to move on from Kenny & give the reigns to Mason I will be a fan the same as if it’s Kenny’s To lose next year too.
I love the Khan/Weidle draft and what it has produced and feel we are in good hands hoping Weigel doesn’t get plucked until he has a chance to build some things but after this draft I know it’s inevitable
And I am also on record as saying that Mason deserved to start at the beginning of last year. He had the best preseason by far in the so called QB battle. But I understood that Pickett was looked at as the future and I applaud Mason for working hard and keeping the high road. He is the epitome of class never anything negative and just worked that is old school Steeler mentality. I am just keeping the same energy towards Kenny that I always had for Rudolph.
As far as Trubisky goes all you have to know is he was drafted by Ryan Pace. Who was fired from the Bears and went to Atlanta who drafted Ridder, Who they’re also saying is probably a bust. The moral of the story is beware of anybody drafted by Ryan Pace. Treat like a Plague victim.
The problem is that Trubisky is a lot like Lance was in SF and I suspect, Pickett in Pittsburgh:
That is, he’s emblematic of 1st round draft picks—especially QB’s—who don’t pan out. Coaching staffs invariably stay with these types of guys too long in trying to justify what was really a wasted pick
Trubisky was just that in Chicago. Lance in SF. And I’m betting Pickett will be the same here
As for Trubisky, I’m hopeful his bags are packed. He made a nice amount of money and always exuded team. But he’s about as much of an NFL QB as you are
Mason isn’t the answer. I was hoping Kenny was, but it doesn’t look like he’s the answer. Mitch? Meh.
Gonna have to draft a QB, or sign/trade for one. I’m gonna guess they try the draft route again. Until then, play with the hot hand, which is Rudolph at the moment.
I agree Kenny and Mason are not the answer. The Steelers would benefit from bringing in an established play caller next year. The team is too good to leave it in the hands of a potential rookie, a mediocre 2nd year or a Mitch. Pittsburgh should go after Kirk Cousins in the off-season. With QB’s like Lamar and Burrow in the same division Pittsburgh needs a guy who can elevate this offense.
Justin Fields, Russel Wilson and Ryan Tannehill are going to be available next season as well. If they cannot win the bidding war for Cousins I think Wilson would be the next guy they go after. Wilson would be a nice fit, I think he would feel very comfortable on a team that plays strong defense and loves to run the ball. Russel and Tomlin would make a nice duo. And before Russel’s benching he was ranked 9th in the league, he was not playing bad football.
Justin Fields would bring some much needed dynamic plays to the offense. People are still questioning him and the fans might not agree with the move, but he would be the 3rd guy on my list.
That’s officially a benching – even though last week was the true benching. Pickett shouldn’t ever take another snap. That being said he’s def QB1 next year
Who is definitely QB1 next year, Pickett? I would assume that depends on many factors such as how Mason plays next weekend, if they slip into the playoffs how he plays in that game (which they will surely lose), etc.
Will be interesting if Rudolph (if he re-signs here) outplays Pickett in training camp and wins the job. A rare admission of a draft mistake?
Pickett is. Tomlin won’t admit that wrong. Rudolph could potentially sign & start with a Washington, Denver (once they let go of Russ), Minnesota even.
That would be fantastic. Mason outplays Pickett and then signs as a starting QB elsewhere in the offseason. Very Willie Beamen-esque.
As a Steelers’ fan, I want that for him. I don’t want him to resign here, because the Rooney’s and Tomlin will not admit their wrong with Pickett. The Steelers in the Tomlin year almost always allow first rounders to play through their first contracts. Then Rudy gets lost in the abyss again. I hope he gets a nice 2/20M and plays off of that.
If I’m Rudolph, I’m not allowing myself to be placed in a position of having to trust Tomlin again.
But that said, it’s hard to fathom he’ll hear that he’s going to be given the starting shot in another place that he has here thanks to 2 or 3 stellar games.
Again, Robbie Benson in “All the Right Moves” analogy here. Comes in with accolades, lands in doghouse, sits the pine and when called upon, lights it up
Coach calls him in to discuss the future and Benson tells him to stuff it. Would be deserved here but I don’t see it happening
And as I stated before, it would surprise me if Pickett *isnt* the starter next year, even if Rudolph outplays him till kingdom come
I always go back to Matt Flynn. 2 career starts (albeit one with 408 yards & 5 TD’s) then Seattle gives him 3 years $20.5M. It didn’t work out (for Flynn that is, Seattle had a rookie named Russell Wilson beat him out) but it shows precedent that a team will sign someone off of minimal success to battle out a starting spot.
Yeah. You’re right, of course. If a team is desperate and think they have the answer, they’ll pay the fee
What is a Yinzer?
Russ to Pittsburgh!
Agreed. With a lot of people posting the same thing Kenny Pickett is definitely not the answer for the Steelers offense. He’s a good kid he’s just not right for this team when they draft them first round in 2023 I was certainly a static. But unfortunately, that fell by the wayside. I’m not saying that Mason Rudolph, is the answer by Kenny Pickett clearly is not. He gets nervous too quickly in the pocket, and it may be a learning curve, but I honestly think Pittsburgh should look at other options for quarterbacks for 2024.