Pittsburgh Steelers fans will have to wait until after Christmas to know whom coach Mike Tomlin will choose to start at quarterback for their next game.Tomlin would not broach the question during his news conference following the Steelers’ 34-11 victory against the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday evening. Making his first start in more than two years, third-string Mason Rudolph had the best passer rating (124.0) for a Steelers’ starting quarterback since Ben Roethlisberger’s 125.4 against the Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 11, 2020.
Answering an inquiry phrased to give him such an out regarding the naming of a starter for the New Year’s Eve game at the Seattle Seahawks, Tomlin said: “You’re right — It is early to ask.”
The Steelers’ starter for the first 12 games this season, Kenny Pickett, is recovering from “tightrope” surgery on an injured ankle suffered during a Dec. 3 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Pickett returned to practice this week — as a limited participant — but Thursday was ruled out of playing against Cincinnati. Rudolph replaced an ineffective Mitch Trubisky late in the Steelers’ loss at the Indianapolis Colts last week.
Rudolph completed 17 of 27 passes for 290 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions against the Bengals on Saturday. Like his coach, Rudolph after the game did not take a strong position when asked if he felt he deserved a chance to start another game. “You’re asking the wrong person,” Rudolph said. “Listen, we play this game to play (in games), but that’s out of my hands. I will find out the marching orders as we go.” The next public comments from the Steelers will come in the form of Tomlin’s weekly news conference Tuesday.
