The Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to rebuild just over a year after the retirement of Ben Roethlisberger, and job one is for them to find their next franchise quarterback.
They appear to be invested in Kenny Pickett, whom they took with the No. 20 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, but they also want to have reliable depth behind him just in case.
On Monday, Ari Meirov reported that Pittsburgh is expected to re-sign backup QB Mason Rudolph.
The #Steelers are expected to re-sign QB Mason Rudolph, bringing him back for a sixth season, per multiple reports. He'll be in the facility tomorrow.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 15, 2023
Many members of Steelers Nation are not happy about this move.
NOOOOOOOOOO
— PickensBurgh🫡 (@PickensBurgh) May 15, 2023
Steelwahs, wha happeneduh?
— Unstoutable (@Unstoutable) May 15, 2023
Cut that bum
— Alex Behunin (@AlexBehunin) May 15, 2023
This fan, on the other hand, feels retaining Rudolph was a decent move.
Really easy decision tbh… he’s much better than both Tanner Morgan & Bryce Perkins… and the familiarity with the system is just icing on the cake
— Sir Rick Combine 🥷 (@KwonviIIe) May 15, 2023
Rudolph was a third-round draft choice in 2018, and he didn’t play at all as a rookie, as he was Pittsburgh’s third-string signal-caller.
He got promoted to the second string in 2019 and got onto the field for 10 games, starting eight of them after Roethlisberger suffered a season-ending elbow injury.
Rudolph put up 1,765 passing yards and 13 passing touchdowns that season while completing 62.2 percent of his pass attempts.
In Week 11 that year, he got involved in an infamous incident against the Cleveland Browns when he was tackled by Pro Bowl defensive end Myles Garrett, who removed his helmet and hit him with it.
Last season, Rudolph was third on the Steelers’ depth chart behind Pickett and Mitchell Trubisky, and it appears that will likely be the best he can do during the 2023 season.
The team is hopeful for the upcoming campaign, as they have added veteran wide receiver Allen Robinson and are seemingly high on receivers George Pickens and Diontae Johnson.
NEXT: The Steelers Are Visiting With A Former Pro Bowl LB Today