Although the Steelers used a first-round pick on Kenny Pickett, Mitchell Trubisky is the favorite to be the team’s Week 1 starter. Pittsburgh’s initial 2022 depth chart reflected that plan, listing Trubisky with the first team and Mason Rudolph as his backup.
These placements can certainly change over the next month, and each of Pittsburgh’s three passers has received first-team work. But Trubisky has garnered the bulk of the Steelers’ starter reps during training camp. The former No. 2 overall pick has not distanced himself from his competition. Trubisky has enjoyed bright spots, but for the most part, he has struggled in camp, via Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com and The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly.
After Trubisky flamed out with the Bears, Steelers signed the 2021 Bills backup to a two-year, $14MM deal that included playing-time incentives. This is a fairly clear-cut bridge situation, similar to the one in which Trubisky replaced Mike Glennon in Chicago five years ago, but it is unclear how much developmental time Pickett will need to take over. Only three Round 1 passers over the past 10 years have gone beyond Week 10 of their rookie years without making a start (Jordan Love, Patrick Mahomes and Johnny Manziel), though a few (including Trey Lance and Paxton Lynch) returned to the bench after rookie-year starts.
Rudolph has looked the best thus far, ESPN.com’s Brooke Pryor said during an interview with 93.7 The Fan (Twitter link). This continues a trend from the team’s offseason program. The Steelers have been careful to include Ben Roethlisberger‘s longtime backup in conversations about this year’s starting job. The former third-round pick beating out Trubisky, however, would certainly signal a free agency misstep by the team. Rudolph’s extension, signed in 2021, runs through this season.
“We’re not going to micromanage or overmanage this quarterback competition,” Mike Tomlin said, via Wilson. “The depth chart will not rest on every throw. I know that you guys will want to ask me every day and every throw, but we’re going to be a little bit more steady than that.”
The 49ers continue to dangle Jimmy Garoppolo in trades, and although the veteran starter is tied to a $24.2MM base salary (nonguaranteed until Week 1), any team that trades for the ninth-year passer would rework his contract. No rumors have emerged indicating Garoppolo is a legitimate option for Pittsburgh, but if Pickett is viewed to be closer to a redshirt rookie than one who takes over early, the 49ers trade chip would almost certainly be a better option compared to the two Steelers vets. Pittsburgh holds just less than $10MM in cap space.
Weird reading Pitt has uncertainty at the QB spot.
Get used to it
When have you ever had QB stability? Ha! Cleveland a competent QB?
We’ve never had Watson. You can deny it all you want but if you know football like you claim to, you know Watson is one of the best. And with Cleveland’s roster talent….oh boy. What’s happened in the past means nothing. You don’t win with an average quarterback. Watson isn’t average.
He’s has a 28-25 record. link to pro-football-reference.com sound investment.
No different than Baker’s 500 record. link to pro-football-reference.com
All he does is allow for Cleveland to still be laughing stock of the league. And you help mightly with the laughing stock portion as well.
And Joe Burrow has a worse record. Team record means nothing. Lamar Jackson is 37-12 which has to give him one of the best winning percentage in the NFL but I’m guessing that there’s 10 quarterbacks that most would pick before him. I’d take Burrow over Jackson. I’d take Herbert over Jackson. I’d take Watson over Jackson. You know the others.
Good luck keeping Watson away from more female masseuses. You don’t have Watson at this point and when you do, he isn’t going to automatically win anything with all the pressure and scrutiny he’ll have on him
We all shall see how good he is after not playing in a game since the last game of the 2020 season on 1/3/21.
Will be missing at least 6 games after missing all of last year. No guarantees that he will be his old self when he returns.
ya browns fans have no room to talk about QB carousel, very likely that Watson fails if he ever plays again too.
as for Mitch struggling , let’s see how he does in the preseason games. Mason certainly has a chance to pass him on the depth chart.
That’s a bad sign if Rudolph is your quarterback. Very likely Watson fails? Did you dream that? That’s like me saying TJ Watt likely won’t get a sack this year
Watson likely to fail for 2 reasons..
1. trying to come back after 2 years on the shelf
2. he’s on the browns
He’s 26. The Cleveland writers say that he looks like he hasn’t missed any time. It’s not like he’s been injured. He’s still working out and throwing. I know you want to to fail but only people like you think he will. There isn’t any football analyst or “expert” that believes that. You’re not exactly the all knowing are you?
And he’s going to get booed everywhere on the road and have that contract to live up to.
Oh boy….an opposing player getting booed? How is he ever going to survive that? I’m not really sure how you boo one person on a team. Unless it’s the kicker. It’s not like Watson is gonna step in the batter’s box. Everyone on here is just reaching. Watson will be Watson once he plays. And Watson is a pro bowl quarterback
Pitt will always have uncertainty at the QB spot. You can only stay in college for a few years.
PGH on the other hand…
Does Roethlisberger hanging out in college bars when he’s 28 constitute still being in college? We know what happened there
If your team had any clue about drafting, they would have taken Ben over Kellen Winslow, oops. Who also is in jail for sexual charges. Great organization you support. If you had drafted Ben, you would argue for his rights as much as Watsons. You could care less about the player(s), its the organization you in love with.
You write these comments because you have nothing else in your life. All of us here commenting love the game & enjoy commenting on it. And we do argue, but not a single person here freaks out over 1 player and 1 team. This is your only therapy.
And frankly, I’m fine mocking you! Doesn’t bother me 1 bit. Keep posting for our entertainment.
You’re the guy getting upset Arthur. You’re right. I root for the team. I said that many times. I guarantee that if Watson played for your team, you wouldn’t want him banned for life. You can deny that all you want but it’s true. I’ve said all along that Watson deserves a suspension and a fine. Let him get it and then he plays football. Roethlisberger was allowed to do that. Kobe was allowed to do that. They were even accused of rape, which is a heck of lot worse than what Watson is accused of Arthur.
Your jabs are nothing Bengalsbacker. And no, I have never supported rich athletes & people getting away with crimes. Enjoy dreaming of that Watson massage tonight. And enjoy another losing season.
Bengals backer? Yeah, you really know football. Watson plays for the Browns. The Bengals have their own assaulters
Bengals…browns…same difference
Not the same. Bengals have been to three Super Bowls. Browns have just been pathetic.
I guarantee you I did not want Watson on the Steelers under any circumstance.(after dealing with Ben backlash over the past 10 years)
..but I can agree that many in Pittsburgh did want him
Of course they did. I read the article written by a Pittsburgh sports guy who admitted wanting Watson and at the end he took a poll. Do you have issues with people cooking your dinner at a restaurant or anyone else in the service industry doing work for you that has been accused or even convicted of this type of crime? I always love the people wanting closed borders and the Mexicans shipped back but they’ll gladly hire them to cut their grass or cook their meal or paint their house if it means saving a few bucks
i actually am not very comfortable with other people making my food.
but to your point, those people aren’t in a position of PR and representing a city in a taxpayer funded stadium
You don’t live in Cleveland. Not your tax dollars
Was the Pittsburgh sports guy Andrew Fillipponi?He has ? He has wished for numerous QBs over the past several years even with Roethisberger still on the roster and absolutely no cap space available.
Ben is retired. And you’re here trying to attack him while defending that repeat sexual offender your clown team traded for. You are standing on thin ice pretending it’s the moral high ground.
Not attacking Roethlisberger, just attacking the hypocrites. That would be you. Just heard Trubisky went 0-20 in the red zone and Pickett is struggling so bad that he’s definitely the #3 quarterback. Pittsburgh will be the worst team in the league if the Jets, jaguars or Texans improve their quarterback play
This Brownsfan guy kills me. lolol
The team has been a meme for how many years?And it continues to be a joke with how desperate the owner is to win.
Stooping so low as to bring in a guy like Deshaun Watson, with that baggage, and to pay him that kind of money. Its got to be a new low for the franchise.
Its PRECISELY the kind of thing though, the CLEVELAND BROWNS do.
Do you know how it usually ends up? I do.
I’ll be prepared to watch the train wreck.
Franchises like the Ravens or the Steelers are on another level compared to one like the Cleveland Browns… Like I said, meme status more than anything else.
Lol
Brownsfan, I think you seriously need to revaluate.
You are embarrassing yourself with every comment you make on this forum.
Why do you keep saying “Cleveland”?
The name has been officially changed to Rape City, OH.
So, you must be referring the Rape City Browns.
The fans in Rape City love their Browns.
I’m surprised that the Steelers didn’t go after Jimmy Garoppolo. He’d take them farther than any of the other QBs.
1 week into training camp… Relax.
Time to bring back Landry Jones who apparently learned a few tricks in the XFL. link to youtube.com