(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Mike Tomlin reiterated at his press conference this morning that Ben Roethlisberger will get the start at quarterback against the Lions on Saturday night. This means Dwayne Haskins will get work with the second-and third-team offense for the third straight exhibition game.
Tomlin was asked if Haskins, who played really well against Philadelphia, deserved some playing time with the first-team offense rather than the reserves, and Tomlin didn't think so under the circumstances.
"Not in this particular instance, no," Tomlin said. "The emphasis for this outing, as it pertains to the quarterback position, is getting Ben his first in-stadium exposure of the preseason. And then we'll go from there."
With Haskins not getting reps with the first-team in the preseason, I just can't see him surpassing Mason Rudolph on the depth chart unless things go really bad in the next two preseason games.
It appears that the Steelers are just settling with Haskins as their No. 3 quarterback. If it was a true quarterback competition for the No. 2 spot, then Haskins would have got first-team reps against the Eagles last week. It seems like this year is just a trial run with Haskins to see what they have for next year, as it's Roethlisberger's presumably final season.