Mason Rudolph is not treating this summer like a quarterback battle that demands a new approach. For the Pittsburgh Steelers veteran, the job description may have changed on paper, but the mindset has not.
After the first practice of training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Rudolph made it clear that he’s focused on the same thing he’s always chased: every rep he can get.
"I love getting any reps I can get, that's how I’ve been treated my whole career," Rudolph said. "Any rep you can get in an NFL training camp is special, and you work so hard for those all offseason your whole life. I've never cared whether it's two, three, fours, you know, treating the rep like it's a game rep is the most important thing.”
That attitude fits the way Rudolph has handled his place in the quarterback room, even as the Steelers sort through the depth chart behind Aaron Rodgers. Asked about Will Howard and Drew Allar coming to him for guidance early in their careers, Rudolph pointed to the different stages all three quarterbacks have already lived through.
“All three of us have been the freshman in college, the freshman in high school, the older guy, the starter in college, so we’ve all been in different roles throughout our years as quarterbacks,” Rudolph said. “That takes care of itself.
Your play speaks louder than how you handle a rotation. They’re just two great guys, and are awesome to have in the quarterback room.”
For most of the offseason, the expectation was that Howard would claim the No. 2 job and Allar would settle into the No. 3 spot as a rookie. That outlook left Rudolph looking like the odd man out, with a possible trade or release hanging over him as Pittsburgh leaned into a youth movement behind Rodgers in Mike McCarthy’s first year as head coach.
But Rudolph opened camp as the backup, and that means he’s also taking the first-team reps Rodgers isn’t getting to start camp. That alone makes him look like the current leader over Howard.
Still, nothing about this is settled. The Steelers have a clear reason to keep Howard around as long as possible so they can figure out exactly what he is, whether that ends up being as a backup or something more. Putting him behind Rudolph sends a message, too, and it may be designed to push the second-year quarterback and squeeze more out of him over the next month before roster cuts.
There’s also the practical side of it. Howard has not taken a snap in the preseason or regular season, and neither has Allar. That gives McCarthy and his staff a real reason to value Rudolph’s experience if Rodgers were to miss time during the season.
And that’s what keeps this race alive. Howard may have the upside, but Rudolph brings steadiness, and that kind of reliability can be hard to move past. The ceiling might not be as high, but the floor is a lot more secure, which is exactly why the backup job is still up for grabs.
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