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Why Steelers Mason Rudolph should be given a shot at redemption

By Jobe Morrison

PITTSBURGH, PA - NOVEMBER 10: Mason Rudolph #2 of the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrates after defeating the Los Angeles Rams on November 10, 2019 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - NOVEMBER 10: Mason Rudolph #2 of the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrates after defeating the Los Angeles Rams on November 10, 2019 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /
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GLENDALE, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 08: Quarterback Mason Rudolph #2 (C) of the Pittsburgh Steelers sits alongside Devlin Hodges (L) and Ben Roethlisberger (R) during the second half of the NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on December 08, 2019, in Glendale, Arizona. The Steelers defeated the Cardinals 23-17. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 08: Quarterback Mason Rudolph #2 (C) of the Pittsburgh Steelers sits alongside Devlin Hodges (L) and Ben Roethlisberger (R) during the second half of the NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on December 08, 2019, in Glendale, Arizona. The Steelers defeated the Cardinals 23-17. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Ben Roethlisberger vs Mason Rudolph’s first season starting

Before you question my competence or say I am disrespecting the legend, hear me out.

Big Ben’s rookie season had a lot of factors at play vs Mason’s (in essence) “rookie” year.

Ben’s rookie year was magical. But before the magic began, consider the fact Bill Cowher had him as the projected 3rd QB behind incumbent starter Tommy Maddox and back up Charlie Batch. Then the dominos fell…

Batch gets hurt in the preseason and misses some time, Maddox gets hurt in week 2 in Baltimore, and the Hall of Fame career began for Big Ben. He leads a team that was previously 6-10 to an incredible 15-1 record–not losing a single start.

I will not ever discredit his role during his rookie or even sophomore season at the helm–he made big plays Maddox nor Batch could make. There’s a reason he became a future Hall of Famer and won two Super Bowls. But I will admit he had help along the way.

One thing Ben and Mason both had were stout defenses. The big difference between these two? Mason didn’t have the healthy offense and run game Ben had–a big factor to consider.

Any time the Steelers eclipsed 100 yards rushing in 2019, they won. The consistent ground game will help any young quarterback–even Big Ben had that consistency. Not to mention, Ben had a very competent offensive coordinator (but we’ll get to that later.)

Having a consistent ground game would’ve helped develop Mason a little bit better–I firmly believe that. The big thing I do want to stress as well is very simple: Ben is a once in a generation type player.

Mason Rudolph is not Ben Roethlisberger–that’s obvious. This does not mean that Mason can’t be a serviceable QB in the future. Even Ben had rough outings in his first few years under center.

Be patient and let’s understand these guys are on different levels–very, very few are even on Ben’s playmaking level. Mason needs an opportunity to develop, which leads us to our next point…

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