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Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk thinks the Steelers will be making a massive mistake if they go with Mason Rudolph as QB1 in 2022. Florio didn't hold back on 93.7 The Fan on Friday.
"It can't be Mason Rudolph. I'll hit myself in the head with my own helmet if they bring him back," Florio said. "He's not even good enough to be a backup. Haven't we seen enough of Mason Rudolph?"
Florio makes a good point, as Rudolph was benched for undrafted free agent Devlin "Duck" Hodges in 2019. Hodges isn't even in the league anymore ... It's hard to imagine Rudolph suddenly changing into a competent quarterback.
Florio thinks once the quarterback carousel gets going, the Steelers could end up with a major upgrade at the quarterback position.
Big-name quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson have been mentioned as possible replacements for Roethlisberger, but it would be surprising if either situation came to fruition. Trading for Jimmy Garoppolo or Derek Carr have also been thrown out there by the media and oddsmakers. They both hold hefty salaries, however. Carr is slotted to make a salary of $19,777,519 in 2022, while Garoppolo is set to earn a base salary of $24,200,000 this year. Marcus Mariota and Gardner Minshew could be sleeper options, as well.
According to Vegas, Rudolph is currently the favorite to replace Roethlisberger in 2022 with odds at +275. Derek Carr is second at +700 and Jimmy Garoppolo is third with +750. Jameis Winston (+900), Kenny Pickett (+1000), Matt Corral (+1000) and Aaron Rodgers (+1600) finish out the list.
Tomlin said during his season-ending press conference on Tuesday that "all options are on the table" when asked about finding Roethlisberger's heir apparent.
Whoever the next Steelers' quarterback is, there's a good chance he will be mobile or at least have the ability to extend plays. Tomlin has raved about quarterback mobility throughout this past season.
"Man, quarterback mobility is valued," Tomlin said on Tuesday. "Not only by me but by everyone. It’s just a component of today’s game, and increasingly so."
After watching two seasons of a non-mobile Roethlisberger, I don't think it's for sure conclusion that Tomlin will just hand the keys to Rudolph to lead the offense. There's eight months until September, so a lot can change by then.