Pittsburgh (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers’ season was spared against Cincinnati thanks in part to Mason Rudolph’s outstanding performance. On New Year’s Eve, when the Steelers play the Seattle Seahawks, the seasoned backup quarterback might get another chance to do it.
Rudolph will “have the ball” to start the week and will start against the Seahawks if starter Kenny Pickett’s surgically repaired right ankle is not ready in time, according to coach Mike Tomlin’s statement on Tuesday.
The Steelers (8-7) ended a three-game losing streak when Rudolph threw for 290 yards and two touchdowns in a 34-11 rout of Cincinnati, Pittsburgh’s largest offensive explosion in a victory in over three years. Rudolph appeared at ease as he lofted the pass to George Pickens, who finished with two touchdowns and 195 receiving yards.
“I felt he did a really good job of communicating with people regardless of the moment, and being comfortable being himself,” Tomlin said. “That, in my opinion, demonstrated his self-assurance, and he continued to be aggressive throughout,”
Since hurting his right ankle against Arizona on December 3, Pickett has not participated in any sports. A few days later, he had “tightrope” surgery, and last week, he made a limited comeback to practise. Regarding what boxes Pickett would need to check to return to the field, Tomlin declined to speculate. The team is adopting a similar strategy as last week, which calls for Rudolph to practise with the starting lineup while Pickett completes his rehabilitation.
“On Wednesday, we’ll see how (Pickett) performs,” Tomlin stated. As of right now, Mason Rudolph is the one with the ball.
With a little assistance from elsewhere, the Steelers can only hope to advance to the playoffs by winning their road games against the Baltimore Ravens (12-3) and Seattle Seahawks (8-7). They would have virtually been eliminated had they lost to the Bengals. Rather, on Pittsburgh’s second snap, Rudolph hit Pickens for an 86-yard catch-and-run touchdown, providing one of the NFL’s worst offences with a much-needed boost. From that point on, the Steelers easily won.
Even though Tomlin emphasised that he was optimistic Rudolph, who has one of the team’s longest tenures and has ranked third on the depth chart the last two seasons, could quickly overcome his rust, “we feel better having tangible evidence of performance this week.”
After scoring 36 points against Cincinnati in 2020, Pittsburgh’s 34 points in a win were its highest since then. Additionally, the victory margin of 23 points was the biggest since the Steelers defeated Jacksonville by 24 points in the same season. Pittsburgh only finished with 397 yards rather than more than 400 yards for the second time since 2020 because of one sack from Cincinnati.
Following his first victory as a starter since 2019, Rudolph expressed his hope for another opportunity but acknowledged that it wasn’t his call. Maybe, but Tomlin’s more reserved attitude towards Pickett’s availability than even a week ago gave a clear indication that Rudolph would play when Pittsburgh attempts to win in Seattle for just the second time in franchise history—that is, unless Pickett makes a huge improvement over the next few days.
Elandon Roberts, an inside linebacker for the Steelers, suffered a pectoral muscle injury against Cincinnati. Tomlin is more upbeat about safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who may return to action this week following a knee injury sustained on December 16 against Indianapolis.
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