Steelers' Mason Rudolph Was Very Direct After Aaron Rodgers Officially Signs

The Pittsburgh Steelers finally know what their quarterback depth chart will look like for mandatory minicamp and training camp: Aaron Rodgers will be the starter now that he is finally signed. Mason Rudolph will be right behind him now that he has returned to the team. After that, Skylar Thompson and rookie Will Howard will compete for the last spot on the 53-man roster, with the loser likely going to the practice squad if he doesn't get claimed off waivers by someone else. 

Before throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at a Pittsburgh Pirates game, Rudolph caught up with Kevin Gorman of TribLIVE and spoke about the whole Rodgers situation and what it means for him now.

"I had a feeling they were going to bring somebody in," Rudolph said. "Obviously, Aaron was at the forefront of the conversation for a long time. It won’t change my approach. We’ve got one more week of practice coming up, our mandatory minicamp. It will be nice to get everybody in the building. I’ll keep doing what I’ve done my whole career. I’ve had plenty of adversity and found a way to battle through it. I stayed ready to play well when called upon."

General Manager Omar Khan promised the team that there would be four quarterbacks ready to go for training camp. The only question was who it would be. Based on Rudolph's comments, he was as confused as Steeler Nation was about the whole saga, and if Rodgers would actually come to Pittsburgh or not. The 41-year-old is here now, which brings much-needed clarity to the whole room. 

Rudolph spoke about that clarity surrounding the quarterback room and his place in it.

"It provides clarity," Rudolph said. "I’m excited to see a lot of the faces that are coming back, obviously Aaron. I’m just going to keep doing my job — that’s all I can do — and try to help my team win games."

Rudolph entered Organized Team Activities (OTAs) as the starter, but he didn't know if he would have any real competition, or if he would be given the backup role. Now he knows what to expect in the upcoming minicamp, as well as training camp later on. He will be working with the second-team offense for the foreseeable future. 

Would Steelers Be Willing To Give Rudolph Meaningful Playing Time In 2025?

Many fans are very concerned about Rodgers' age, regression, and recent struggles. Of course, the Steelers will give him plenty of chances to prove that he can still sling it at this stage of his career. However, if worse comes to worst with the former MVP's playing abilities, some tough decisions may have to be made to get the team back on track. 

On one hand, the Steelers benched veteran quarterback Mitch Trubisky in 2023 in favor of Rudolph due to poor performance. That ended up being the spark that Pittsburgh needed to get back on track and go on a little run to sneak into the playoff picture. It's proven to work, so it would make sense if that were to happen again in 2025.

On the other hand, Ben Roethlisberger never got benched in his final season, where he struggled constantly. While Rodgers doesn't have the Steelers' tenure that Roethlisberger did, Head Coach Mike Tomlin has been pounding the table for Rodgers, so he may want to give him the Roethlisberger treatment.