Mason Rudolph is set to make his first start of the NFL season for the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 16 with Kenny Pickett still sidelined due to injury and Mitch Trubisky benched amid struggles.
Rudolph will get his shot as Pittsburgh aims to snap a three-game losing streak and stop its free fall in the playoff picture.
Mason Rudolph To Start for Pittsburgh Steelers
Rudolph is set to start in a crucial AFC North clash against the Cincinnati Bengals after making his first appearance of the season in Week 15’s loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
Mitch Trubisky has been the Steelers’ backup quarterback throughout the season, stepping in when Pickett is unavailable. He did so again over the last few weeks after Pickett suffered an ankle injury and underwent TightRope surgery on it less than three weeks ago.
Pickett suffered the injury in Pittsburgh’s Week 13 loss to the Arizona Cardinals, giving way to Trubisky.
The team has struggled ever since, though, losing that game to Arizona and the last two as well in Weeks 14 and 15.
Trubisky has been less than stellar in each of those contests, particularly last week’s 30-13 loss to the Colts. He went 16 of 23 for 169 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions on the night, exiting in favor of Rudolph after the second pick all but sealed the defeat late in the fourth quarter.
Rudolph went 2 of 3 for three yards in his brief stint and is set to see much more action on Saturday.
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Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters on Thursday that Pickett had been ruled out for Saturday’s contest despite returning to practice as a limited participant this week. Tomlin also officially named Rudolph the starter for the contest.
It will be just Rudolph’s second appearance of the 2023 season and his 11th career start overall. He has amassed a career record of 5-4-1 across those 10 starts, going 5-3 in an eight-game stint as Pittsburgh’s starting QB back in 2019 and making one start per year over the last two seasons.
Rudolph has gone 238 of 387 for 2,369 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions across his four-year NFL career with much of that production coming in 2019.
He will look to channel some more success for Pittsburgh than Trubisky has been able to thus far.
Rudolph’s performance will be crucial for the Steelers (7-7) in a crucial AFC North clash with the Bengals (8-6). Both teams are firmly in the playoff hunt, and each desperately needs a win to bolster its postseason hopes.
Time will tell whether Rudolph can aptly guide Pittsburgh in that endeavor.
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