Mike Tomlin expects backup QB Mason Rudolph to play 'winning football' for Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph got an unexpected start last weekend after starter Ben Roethlisberger tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday.

The Steelers tied 16-16 with the winless Detroit Lions on an overall disappointing offensive day. Rudolph was 30-for-50 with 242 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Despite the outcome of Sunday’s contest, Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin had nice things to say about 26-year-old Rudolph.

“He did a good job articulating the offense, communicating with guys,” Tomlin said, per Teresa Varley of the Steelers website. “His use of pace, his ability to communicate, not only in game but between series, and express likes and dislikes and articulate what he saw was acceptable.

“His reads and distribution of the football was largely what we wanted. He stretched the ball down the field at times and gave us an opportunity to make them not only defend the field horizontally, but vertically.”

The former Oklahoma State standout has exceeded 250 passing yards just twice in his NFL career, so the 242-yard performance on Sunday was one of his better outings. The longest play of the day for Pittsburgh was a 36-yard pass to Diontae Johnson.

Pittsburgh needs more accuracy from their quarterback

Tomlin did throw in an ounce of constructive criticism for his fourth-year quarterback.

“If I could be critical of him in any way, I thought he could have been better from a pinpoint accuracy standpoint in some instances, to set up run after and putting the ball in an ideal circumstance so a guy in the flat can win that flat confrontation.” Tomlin added.

When Rudolph was the Pittsburgh starter for the majority of the year in 2019, he finished the season with a 62.2% completion percentage. Sunday’s completion percentage of 60% fell just short of the old mark.

Because the Steelers have seen a fair amount of Rudolph since he was drafted in 2018, they know what to expect from him and of him.

“This is not the first rodeo for him. It’s not the first rodeo for him with us,” Tomlin added. “I don’t think any of us were surprised by the things that he was able to do for us. As a matter of fact, we expected it. I know he expected it. I think that was his 10th start for us now. We expect that guy to play winning football for us.”

Pittsburgh has yet to say who will start on Sunday. Roethlisberger was vaccinated and could in theory return to the field for a Sunday Night Football matchup between the Steelers and the Los Angeles Chargers. However, the Steelers are preparing for Rudolph to take the field once again.

The Chargers are a 5.5-point favorite at home, a pretty large number considering Pittsburgh’s offensive woes. They have yet to score more than 30 points this season.