After having a career game against the Browns, Steelers QB Mason Rudolph should be the favorite to start in 2021 if Ben Roethlisberger retires.
Expectations were low for Mason Rudolph as he prepared to face the Browns this past week. The Steelers were sitting four of their key starters while injury, illness, and rest meant plenty of other starters saw limited playing time. While the team ultimately lost their game, Rudolph looked very good as a starter despite the difficult situation.
With so many questions surrounding the quarterback position going into the future, here are the four reasons that the Steelers should be comfortable with Rudolph as a starter.
No cap obligations
Rudolph starting next year is entirely predicated on Ben Roethlisberger retiring in the offseason. This would add some major questions to this offense, but losing Roethlisberger from a financial standpoint would be a different story. With the cap likely to be an issue for the team next year, having Rudolph over Roethlisberger for the cap relief would be nice.
As many know, due to the team restructuring his deal last offseason, Roethlisberger has a cap hit of 41.25 million dollars next year. If he were to decide to retire, the Steelers would save just over 27 million dollars from that number. Yes, his cap hit would still be over 22 million despite not being on the roster, but it would be almost halved from what it is scheduled to be. Meanwhile, Rudolph is set to be in the final year of his rookie deal, and even if Roethlisberger remains with the team, he will still have a cap hit of 1.2 million.
Now, this in no way means the Steelers will or should cut Roethlisberger. Losing a franchise quarterback is never the best-case scenario, especially if the primary reason is for cap relief. That said, with his obvious regression, this playoff run could easily be Roethlisberger’s last. Rudolph has little money invested in him, and the team should view that favorably if they have to count on starting him next year.
No resources to get anyone better
Despite the want from the fanbase, it seems like there are pretty bad odds that the Steelers can get a legitimate franchise quarterback next offseason. Even if Roethlisberger retires and they get that cap relief, that will go towards getting cap compliant and retaining their pending free agents. For those that think bringing in a reclamation project like Carson Wentz is viable, his cap hit is just over 30 million dollars.
The Steelers could opt for a low-end free agent, but even then, would they be any better than Rudolph would be? Instead, the Steelers’ best odds of getting a better starter would be via the draft. While that sounds like a good route, the issue then becomes where the Steelers are picking. Given their good record and playoff status, they will be picking in the latter portion of the draft. That area is rife with franchise quarterbacks.
Even if the Steelers got a Mac Jones or Kyle Trask late in the first round of the draft, they would need time to get into the system and learn the playbook. Given that these players have serious concerns about their starting potential, it seems likely that they wouldn’t see the field their rookie year anyway. Unless an unexpected talent falls to the Steelers in the draft, Rudolph will likely be the team’s best bet going into next year.
Better play
Now granted this was only one game, but Rudolph looked like a low-end starting quarterback against the Browns. He threw for over 300 yards and had a pair of touchdowns to just one interception. As well, he showed some decent pocket awareness even when he was getting pressured. Despite playing a playoff team, Rudolph came out firing and looking to win the game as opposed to just getting through the game.
Even better, Rudolph was flinging some deep passes against the Browns. While they weren’t perfect, the offense ran far better last week than it did during its 4.5 game slump that led to three consecutive losses. This doesn’t mean that Rudolph needs to be made the starter this week, but it shows that he can be a legitimate starter for this offense.
In all honesty, his game against the Browns rivaled any of the games he has started so far in his career and should provide hope that he can at least be a transition quarterback for the Steelers if Roethlisberger retires. He can move the ball with his arm and can lead an offense to success. While far from perfect, his play against the Browns showed serious progression from last season. You can’t ask for much more from a young quarterback that was rushed into action.
A new offensive coordinator
No matter who is the quarterback next season, they will ideally have a new offensive coordinator. Randy Fichtner has been a primary culprit of the offensive struggles this year as his offensives have been bland and identical week in and week out. That changed after Roethlisberger supposedly took over the play-calling duties in the second half of the Colts game and he seemed to have less of an influence this week.
Instead, there was a lot of pre-snap motion that is more akin to what Matt Canada added to the playbook earlier in the offseason. As of now, he seems like an early favorite to take over as offensive coordinator if Fichtner is let go. If the previous game against the Browns was any inclination, the Steelers can be successful with a lesser quarterback but a better scheme. This isn’t new to the league either, as we have seen plenty of “quarterback whispers” like Kliff Kingsbury and Zac Taylor ascend to coaching ranks due to the dynamic offenses they call.
It is yet to be seen if Canada has that same level of talent, but his offensive system seems to be more favorable to quarterbacks. It worked with Rudolph yesterday, would likely elevate the game of Roethlisberger if he didn’t retire, and should make the transition to a new quarterback easier. That all assumes he stays, as there is a real threat that the team loses him if they keep Fichtner instead. For the progression of Rudolph, that could be a damaging blow.
While Rudolph has plenty of issues with his game, he showed yesterday that in the right setting, he can succeed. With this offseason featuring the potential retirement of Roethlisberger, the Steelers should be comfortable with giving Rudolph the reigns in his contract year. He showed yesterday that he can swim in a sink or swim scenario, and he could be a surprising stud if working in a friendly offense. At any rate, he will likely be the best option the team has next year, and that shouldn’t scare away too many fans given his success this past week.