Steelers signing Mitchell Trubisky called ninth-best QB move of NFL offseason

Multiple big-name quarterbacks changed clubs during the 2022 NFL offseason. Among them are Matt Ryan, Russell Wilson, Baker Mayfield and Deshaun Watson. 

A Pittsburgh Steelers side that lost future Hall of Famer Ben Roethlisberger to retirement this past winter acquired none of those individuals and instead signed former Chicago Bears castoff and 2021 Buffalo Bills backup Mitchell Trubisky. Trubisky is beginning training camp as the runaway favorite to win the Pittsburgh starting gig over first-round draft selection Kenny Pickett and career backup Mason Rudolph, and Rudolph may even be traded before Week 1 in September. 

For a piece published on Tuesday, Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated explained why he believes Pittsburgh signing Trubisky was the ninth-best quarterback move of the offseason out of 17 listed options. 

"The Steelers made the playoffs last year with Roethlisberger averaging the third-lowest completed air yards per pass in the NFL," Orr noted. "The only quarterback who had a fewer CAY per pass was Jared Goff on a four-win Lions team, according to Pro Football Reference. Trubisky, during his rookie year, was averaging 6.3 CAY, which was about 50% better than Roethlisberger during each of the veteran’s final three years in the NFL. 

"Could Trubisky’s mobility (he has rushed for 1,081 yards compared to Roethlisberger’s 1,373 yards despite Roethlisberger playing nearly two decades in the NFL) bolster a promising young playmaking core and give them the ability to stretch the field more? It’s worth finding out for $7 million per season." 

Earlier this week, The Athletic's Mike Sando ranked Trubisky No. 33 overall among active signal-callers.

"That just goes to show, if you are not a jerk you can get resurrected by relaxing for a year and letting the rest of the (crummy) quarterbacks be (crummy) so that you can look good, and then they’ll circle back to you," an offensive coach said about Pittsburgh grabbing Trubisky. 

There's some bulletin-board material for Trubisky, not that the 27-year-old needs extra motivation to want to keep Pickett a spectator on Sundays for as long as possible.