Why Mason Rudolph deserves a shot at being the Steelers starting QB in 2022
Recently, I discussed some ideas on why the Steelers should pass on acquiring a quarterback in free agency or the NFL Draft this season. Much of that column was focused on the business aspect of signing or picking a QB in 2022, with the team seemingly setup to see if two of their other quarterbacks could potentially fill any void left by the retiring Ben Roethlisberger.
Now I’m going to share why those quarterbacks deserve a chance, in addition to the business end of pro football, starting with Mason Rudolph.
To recap: Mason Rudolph was the sixth quarterback taken in the 2018 NFL Draft. Previous to that event, many mock drafts had Rudolph being taken in the first round, even some hinting the Steelers as a potential landing spot.
Five quarterbacks were taken in the first round of that draft, with Rudolph falling to the third. The Steelers would trade up three spots in the third round, up from 79 to 76 to jump in front of the Cincinnati Bengals – who had back-to-back picks at 77 and 78 – to select Rudolph. The move was made to prepare for a future without Ben Roethlisberger, as Pittsburgh openly stated later that they had a first round grade on the Oklahoma State quarterback.
In much the same way fans are begging to develop a rookie QB this offseason, some even mentioning the same mid-round style of prospects who could represent value picks, Mason Rudolph was selected to sit and learn behind Ben Roethlisberger in the same manner.
He would spend the 2018 season as the team’s third quarterback, but would be thrust into action after winning the backup job in 2019, following a Week 2 mid-game injury to Roethlisberger: who would be placed on injured reserve for the remainder of that season.
Almost every argument I see against allowing Rudolph an opportunity to takeover the starting quarterback role in 2022 points back to this ill-fated season. Many of the complaints about the offense this season, or in 2020, were carried over from 2019 too.
Another “favorite” of fans was WR Donte Moncrief, who everyone recalls for his multiple drops in the season opener at New England. Even with Roethlisberger throwing the ball, Moncrief would only catch 3 of his 10 targets in that game, for a total of 7 yards.
Rudolph’s second pass target of the entire 2019 season was to Moncrief, who did the same thing as in New England, allowing the football to bounce off of his fingers and get intercepted by the Seahawks. It was a sign of things yet to come, as 33 different players would take a snap on offense that season.
Among Rudolph’s supporting cast:
- RBs Benny Snell, Trey Edmunds, Kerrith Whyte, Tony Brooks-James, and Jaylen Samuels
- WRs Donte Moncrief, Johnny Holton, Tevin Jones, Ryan Switzer, and Deon Cain
- TE Nick Vannett
Yes, he had some help, but it was sporadic. James Conner appeared in 10 games, with only 116 carries for 464 yards. JuJu Smith-Schuster missed four full games and portions of others, with TE Vance McDonald missing two games and some of others as well.
Now, he would have Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, and Pat Freiermuth to throw to, and hand off to Najee Harris, and shouldn’t have to worry about a running back, Samuels, playing wildcat snaps that lead to turnovers.
In fact, this is one of several reasons I think Rudolph gets a bad rep he doesn’t deserve: short-term memory.
Most fans have forgotten about those plays by Moncrief and Samuels. They’ve forgotten about a James Conner fumble in San Francisco up 20-17, which gave the 49ers the ball on the Steelers 24 yard line and the eventual go-ahead score. (This followed a 39-yard touchdown pass from Rudolph to Johnson.)
They’ve forgotten how Rudolph was knocked out of the Week 5 game against the Baltimore Ravens, and how JuJu Smith-Schuster fumbled in overtime, giving their opponent the ball well within Justin Tucker‘s field goal range.
Rudolph would bounce back, returning to lead the Steelers to three-straight wins before the worst game of his career: a Thursday Night Football game at the Cleveland Browns. Most remember it for Myles Garrett clocking Rudolph in the head with his own helmet at the conclusion of the game. Others remember Rudolph’s four interceptions too.
I remember the short week of preparation for a division opponent on the road, where in-game, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and James Conner were all injured. (Johnson was famously bleeding from his ear after a helmet-to-helmet hit penalty.)
That game would be followed by Rudolph, clearly not himself, getting benched for Devlin Hodges, who would then be benched back for Rudolph against the Jets – with Rudolph breaking his collarbone after going 14/20 for 129 yards and a touchdown before the injury sidelined him in the third quarter.
I also surmise that fans believe Rudolph is the reason the 2019 team missed the playoffs, despite Hodges starting the final three games. “The Duck” threw six interceptions and took nine sacks, losing all three games as the Steelers finished 8-8.
Outside of that disastrous 2019 season for the Steelers, Rudolph has had two more major appearances, first in a Week 17 game against the Cleveland Browns in 2020. On the road again, the Browns were clinging to playoff hopes in a must-win situation while the Steelers sat a handful of starters, resting them for the following week’s Wild Card round.
Even without a full supporting cast, Rudolph would become the first and only of Ben Roethlisberger’s backups to throw for over 300 yards in a single game.
Mason would complete 22/39 of his passes for 315 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. (Note: this time the pick came from a missed blow to the head by the Browns on Rudolph as he threw the ball. Referee Jerome Boger, infamous for butchering this year’s Bengals-Raiders playoff game, missed the foul in front of him.)
The Steelers still stayed competitive without T.J. Watt, Joe Haden or Cameron Heyward on the defensive side, but would lose 24-22.
Rudolph’s most recent start, came out of the blue, when he was notified the night before that he’d be starting in place of Big Ben, who was placed on the Covid reserve list.
#Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger is going on the Reserve/COVID-19 list and is out Sunday against the #Lions, the team announced.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) November 14, 2021
Most hold this start against Rudolph as well, because the Steelers didn’t beat (or lose to) a winless Detroit Lions team.
Left in the footnotes are fumbles lost by Diontae Johnson and Pat Freiermuth, plus a number of poor snaps by Kendrick Green. (Including one which sailed over the QB’s head in overtime.)
The Lions entered the game following a bye week, and the two teams played the entire game in rainy weather. Yet, it’s Rudolph who shoulders the full brunt of blame for not being able to beat the Lions, while the Baltimore Ravens required an NFL record-breaking field goal bouncing off of the crossbar in order to do the same just weeks prior, and the Browns similarly won by only three points one week later.
In total, Mason Rudolph doesn’t have the same amount of starts as some of the other quarterbacks being floated as free agent pickups for Pittsburgh. Some of those names, Jimmy Garoppolo, Marcus Mariota, and Mitchell Trubisky, all have around 50 starts. In 2017, the 49ers went all-in to acquire Jimmy Garoppolo from the New England Patriots, despite Tom Brady‘s former backup having attempted only 94 regular season passes to date.
The fascination with him as a potential franchise fit, both then and now, has always bothered me based on his his experience. I should note that Garoppolo, in particular, was three picks from falling into the third round back in 2014’s draft as the 62nd selection overall, the 5th quarterback taken that year. (Rudolph was pick 76 and the sixth QB taken in 2018.)
Yet, fans are unwilling to open the door as easily for Rudolph. They’ve “seen enough” so they claim. However, I disagree. Let’s compare some stats to cement the argument.
Rudolph has appeared in 17 games with 10 starts, completing 61.5% of his passes for 2,366 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. He has been sacked 16 times on 384 pass attempts.
His closest competition, Dwayne Haskins, has appeared in 16 games, completing 60.1% of his passes for 2,804 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions. He has been sacked 49 times on 444 pass attempts.
Then you have this year’s top prospects:
- Trevor Lawrence started all 17 games, attempting 602 passes, completing 59.6% for 3,641 yards, 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. He was sacked 32 times.
- Zach Wilson started 13 games, attempting 383 passes (55.6% completion rate) for 2,334 yards, 9 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, with 44 sacks.
- Justin Fields appeared in 12 games with 270 attempts (58.9%), 1,870 yards, 7 touchdowns and 10 picks. The mobile QB was sacked 36 times.
- New England’s Mac Jones fared better, but still 13 interceptions to 22 touchdowns in 17 starts.
Perhaps, first-time starters just struggle?
We’ve seen it happen with the greats, such as Aaron Rodgers, and even with Peyton Manning during their first seasons. We see it year after year with the incoming rookies as well.
Can we maybe consider this before piling on Rudolph as not being capable? Maybe consider the circumstances surrounding a concussion, a major in-game altercation that saw several players fined and suspended, a suspect offensive coordinator and a less than stellar supporting cast of players as reasons we haven’t seen more of what we’ve wanted to date?
And by more, we really only mean wins. In the grand scheme of things, Rudolph is more than capable of matching many current starting quarterbacks around the league.
Maybe, just maybe, that first year of experience for Mason Rudolph in 2019 was what he needed to succeed as a starter in 2022.
I believe he’s at least owed that opportunity.
