The Pittsburgh Steelers had two quarterbacks, Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, start games for them in 2024, but after the season, Wilson signed with the New York Giants and Fields inked a deal with the New York Jets. Even backup quarterback Kyle Allen left for a contract with the Detroit Lions.
With just months to go before the start of the 2025 season, Pittsburgh hasn’t done much to fix their quarterback situation. They signed career backup Mason Rudolph, who spent the 2024 season with the Tennessee Titans after six years with the Steelers, and used a sixth-round pick on Ohio State’s Will Howard, who is coming off a national championship.
The Steelers are still reportedly in on four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers, who has yet to make a decision about his future after being released by the New York Jets earlier this offseason. However, the longer the wait goes on, the less likely it seems that Rodgers will don black and gold this year.
Many believe that if Pittsburgh enters Week 1 with Rudolph or Howard under center, they’re destined to finish under .500 for the first time in the Mike Tomlin era. However, not everyone shares that sentiment. In fact, former Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch thinks the team is better off with Rudolph as their starter.
“Mason Rudolph, he was here, but he wasn’t in this system. So he does have a leg up as it relates to learning the offense because he’s been here for the last couple months,” Batch said recently on “The Arthur Moats Experience” podcast. “I think the longer it goes towards training camp, I think you have to give the edge to Mason Rudolph because that means he knows the system a little bit better than Aaron Rodgers.
“We understand what his resume looks like, but again, this is not a system that Aaron has spent the majority of his career in that you could say it’s a plug-and-play type of situation.”
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While Batch is right in saying that if Rodgers does sign, Rudolph will have had more time in the system and may know it better, we’ve still seen who Rudolph has been throughout his career.
In 29 games played since he entered the NFL as a third-round pick (No. 76 overall) back in 2019, he’s completed 63.7% of his passes for 4,615 yards, 28 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. He’s made 18 starts and has led his teams to a 9-8-1 record.
Rodgers, now multiple years removed from a torn Achilles, should look much better than Rudolph in 2025, if he decides to play, and he could get the best out of this offense and help the Steelers compete for a playoff spot.
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