Tag Archives: Dennis Dixon

Welcome Back Mason. Steelers Resign Mason Rudolph for 1 Year

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When asked just 11 days ago where Mason Rudolph would play in 2023, Chapter head of the Pittsburgh Pro Football writers association Mark Kaboly assured readers, “It won’t be the Steelers.”

steelers 2019 season, T.J. Watt, Mason Rudolph, Maurkice Pouncey, Zach Banner

Photo Credit: Karl Rosner, Steelers.com

During the team’s recently concluded rookie Mini Camp the Steelers gave Tanner Moran jersey number 2. Many took this as further confirmation that the one-time heir-apparent to Ben Roethlisberger’s days in Pittsburgh were over.

  • And just like that the Steelers resigned Mason Rudolph to a one year contract.

Hum, maybe we should have listened when Omar Khan addressed the press way back on February 28th when he responded to reporter’s asking whether Mason and the Steelers were done, “No, not at all. We have a great relationship, good conversation with Mason. The door is still open.”

Omar Khan and Mike Tomlin left the door open, and Mason Rudolph has decided to walk through it. Although its fair to say that Rudolph’s decision was driven by necessity rather than desire.

While Rudolph (and his agent) couldn’t have been expecting an find an opportunity to start in free agency, a shot at a backup job somewhere seemed reasonable. Apparently, 31 NFL General Managers thought differently.

Actually, make that number 32, because at 10 million dollars a year, Mitch Trubisky is entrenched as the Steelers backup behind Kenny Pickett.

  • Nonetheless this is a good move for both the Steelers and Mason Rudolph.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are a team that believes in keeping 3 quarterbacks. Sure, Chuck Noll might have started 1989 with only Bubby Brister and Todd Blackledge on the active roster and Bill Cowher might have begun 1992 with just Bubby behind Neil O’Donnell, but are exceptions.

Mike Tomlin briefly flirted with a 2 quarterback system when he traded Joshua Dobbs after the 2019 season opener. Ben Roethlisberger’s season was over 2 quarters later, and Duck Hodges joined the active roster and was throwing passes before the leaves had begun to fall along Brownsville Road.

Yes, this is a wise move indeed.

Since he arrived in Pittsburgh, Mike Tomlin has carried Dennis Dixon, Charlie Batch, Landry Jones and Devlin Hodges on the active roster as third string quarterbacks and started each of them in meaningful games in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2019.

  • That means once ever three years, Mike Tomlin’s 3rd string quarterback starts a game.

The last time that happened was 2019. So the Steelers are due…

Welcome back Mason Rudolph.

Follow Steelers free agency. Visit our Steelers 2023 Free Agent tracker or click here for all Steelers 2023 free agent focus articles.

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Steelers 2023 Draft Needs @ Quarterback – Does Pittsburgh Pick a 3rd String QB?

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Last year the Pittsburgh Steelers bucked the conventional wisdom that dominate the rest of the NFL: Namely that there were no first round worthy quarterbacks in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Looking no further than their own back yard, Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin begged to differ and the Steelers used a first round pick on a quarterback for the first time since the 2004 NFL Draft.

The draft is almost upon us again – should the Steelers use one of their seven picks on a quarterback in 2023? Let’s take a look.

Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, Steelers vs Seahawks

Kenny Pickett and Mitch Trubisky during preseason. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY

Steelers Depth Cart at Quarterback: The Starter

Quarterback was a clear need for the Steelers entering the 2022 NFL Draft. Yet, if you take Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin at their word, they never expected to get the one they wanted.

  • When Kenny Pickett fell to them at the 20th pick, they wasted little time in calling his name.

Yes, the franchise that passed on the chance to replace Terry Bradshaw with Pitt-star Dan Marino easily went all in on replacing Ben Roethlisberger with Pitt’s Kenny Pickett.

At first glance, Pickett’s rookie statistics appear quite pedestrian. His record as a starter was 7-5. One of those wins was the upset against the Buccaneers and one of those losses was against the Ravens at home. Both were games where Pickett couldn’t finish due to concussions.

During 2022 Pickett threw 389 passes, completed 245 of them for a 63% completion rate, while throwing 7 touchdowns an 9 interceptions.

  • Yes, those numbers look pedestrian indeed.

But there are also truths that aren’t self-evident in these stats. Only one of those 8 interceptions came before the bye week. And even during that pre-bye week stretch of starts, Pickett’s poise was always present in his play. As Craig Wolfey commented after the loss to the Dolphins, Pickett may have thrown two interceptions in the 4th quarter, but the game never looked too big for him.

And twice, late in the season playing under harsh AFC North winter conditions, Kenny Pickett rallied this team for victory in the 4th quarter, and he looked natural doing it.

Steelers Quarterback Depth Chart: The Backup

One of the Steelers first moves in free agency in the spring of 2022 was to sign Mitch Trubisky to a 2-year contract. As Mike Tomlin later explained, they moved to sign Trubsky to “prevent us from doing something stupid in the draft.”

(That’s a sound strategy, because when you reach, Jarvis Jones or Artie Burns happen.)

  • Extreme highs and extreme lows defined Trubisky’s tenure in 2022.

He looked “OK” in the season-opening upset of the Bengals, but couldn’t rally the team to a victory in a very winnable game against the Patriots. The offense struggled against the Browns and the Jets, which led to his benching, in favor of Pickett.

Yet Trubisky played exceptionally well against the Buccaneers, after Pickett got hurt. But Trubisky was horrible in relief against the Ravens.

But against the Carolina Panthers, with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren running strong, Trubisky did an exceptional job, completing 17 of 22 passes for an economic 179 yards and one touchdown. The kind of performance you’d like and expect to see out of your backup.

The Steelers 2023 Quarterback Draft Needs

Steelers Draft, Steelers Draft Needs scale

Much of the rest of the NFL might consider it quaint, but the Pittsburgh Steelers believe in carrying 3 quarterbacks. And the Mike Tomlin era has seen the Golden Age of Steelers third string quarterbacks, with Dennis Dixon, Charlie Batch, Landry Jones, Devlin Hodges all beginning seasons as third stringers, only to start meaningful games during the year.

Thus far Mason Rudolph remains unsigned and even if the Steelers are open to bringing him back, would he really wanted to serve as a third string quarterback?

We probably won’t know until after the draft.

The Steelers neither have a 5th nor 6th round pick and they are certainly not drafting a quarterback on day one or day two. Could the Steelers find a viable 3rd string quarterback with one of their 2 7th round picks.

  • Stranger things have happened.

With that said, the Steelers need at quarterback going into the 2023 NFL Draft should be considered as Fair.

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Steelers 2022 Draft Needs @ Quarterback – Don’t Force Trying to Find a Franchise QB

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Quarterback is football’s critical position. This has been true since the modern game abandoned the Single Wing and has only become “more” true in the 21st century.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been blessed by both excellence and stability at the quarterback position for almost two decades.

But while the 2022 off season is still young, the Steelers have been jolted twice with reminders of how fleeting stability at quarterback can be. First, they lost Ben Roethlisberger to retirement. This they expected. Then, tragedy struck, and they lost Dwayne Haskins, to an untimely, horrific death.

Matt Corral, Mike Tomlin, 2022 NFL Draft

Mike Tomlin sizes up Matt Corrall. Photo Credit: Tribune-Review

Steelers Quarterback Depth Chart: The Potential Starters

For the first time since the year summer of 2000, the Steelers will host their first quarterback competition at St. Vincents. Going into the 2022 NFL Draft, the two contestants are veteran Mason Rudolph and free agent Mitchell Turbisky.

In Mason Rudolph the Steelers have a veteran quarterback whom they graded as a first rounder and picked in the 3rd round of the 2018 NFL Draft. In those four years, Mason Rudolph has appeared in 17 games, started 10 of those, and amassed a 5-4-1 record.

  • He’s completed 61.5% of his passes, and thrown 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Mason Rudolph was thrown to the dogs in 2019 when an elbow injury ended Ben Roethlisberger’s season after just 6 quarters.

While he won 5 of his 8 starts, he suffered a concussion, and was the victim of an assault by Myles Garrett on the road  in the infamous “Body Bag Game” against Cleveland. The truth is that Mason looked shaky and tentative – as in Kordell Stewart al la 1999 – after both of those incidents. That led to his benching in favor of Devlin Hodges.

Hodges himself got benched against the New York Jets, and Mason Rudolph looked strong in relief, only to get injured again. He played fairly well in his only start against the Browns at the end of the 2020 season but was only “OK” in the tie against Detroit.

Four years after drafting him, the Steelers still aren’t sold on Mason Rudolph, explaining their decision to sign Mitch Trubisky to a 2 year, prove it deal. The Chicago Bears made Mitch Trubisky the 2nd pick overall in the 2017 NFL Draft.

  • The conventional wisdom on Trubisky is that he’s a bust.

After four years as a starter, including two playoff seasons, no one wanted to give him a second contract, let alone a shot at a starting job (contrast that with the Sam Darnold trade.) Has Trubsiky been that bad? Here are some interesting numbers:

Mitch Trubisky, Ben Roethlisberger,

 

That’s an interesting if not surprising comparison. Ultimately this is a glass-half vs. glass full comparison. Either Trubisky is only a step down from Roethlisberger, or the gulf between a franchise QB and a good QB is truly defined by the margins.

The terms and length of Trubisky’s deal (1 years for about 7 million per year, plus incentives) signal that the Steelers are giving him a chance to prove he’s an NFL starter and nothing else.

Steelers Quarterback Depth Chart: The Backups

The Steelers are new territory here. This is a franchise that not only believes in investing in the backup quarterback position, but also in the third string quarterback slot. As we’ve mused before, in many was the Mike Tomlin era has also been the Golden Age of Steelers 3rd string quarterbacks, with third stringers like Dennis Dixon, Charlie Batch, Landry Jones and Devlin Hodges getting starts.

Joshua Dobbs signed with the Cleveland Browns the day before Dwyane Haskins died, leaving the depth chart behind the two potential starters bare.

The Steelers 2022 Quarterback Draft Needs

Kenny Pickett, Malik Willis, Matt Corral and Desmond Ridder are just a handful of the potential first round picks at quarterback that the Steelers have shown interest in. And for good reason. Both Rudoph and Trubisky have something to prove, and they have no one behind him should both falter.steelers, draft, needs, priority, 2021 NFL Draft

  • Should the Steelers target a quarterback in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft?

Who knows? Seriously, I’m wise enough not to know that I don’t know enough to evaluate college players coming out for the NFL draft. I do know that the conventional wisdom of the “draftnics” is that this a weak quarterback class.

And the backflips that teams are doing to secure and/or keep established starting quarterbacks show that the majority of NFL personnel managers agree.

If one of the top quarterbacks is still on the board when the Steelers are on the clock, Art Rooney II, Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin would be wise to remember point 3 of the 4 Point Road Map to get the Steelers back to the Super Bowl:

But with that said, the focus of this series isn’t on how the Steelers can add, but what their areas of need are. And the Steelers draft needs at quarterback heading into the 2022 NFL Draft must be considered Moderate-High.

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Big Ben @ His 11th Hour. But Steelers Won’t Seek His Replacement in the 2021 NFL Draft

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“Stability.” “NFL” = not-for-long meaning stability is in short supply. Pittsburgh Steelers are the NFL’s most stable team, and they’ve enjoyed unprecedented stability at the quarterback position, thanks to the presence of Ben Roethlisberger.

  • Pittsburgh’s passion once rose and fell on news of Roethlisberger’s health.

This is no exaggeration. During his sophomore season, KDKA interrupted regular programing for updates on a minor Roethlisberger knee injury. When Roethlisberger first uttered the “R” word following the 2016 AFC Championship loss to the Patriots, he sent Steelers Nation into an anxiety attack.

That’s changed.

The Steelers Hindenburg Rescues the Titanic playoff debacle against the Browns marked a turning point. For the first time management question whether Ben Roethlisberger would be back, while large segments of the press and the fans questions whether Roethlisberger should return.

Ben will be back, but his contract voids after the Super Bowl. Big Ben is rapidly reaching his 11th hour. So how should this impact the Steelers strategy for the 2021 NFL Draft?

Ben Roethlisberger, Ben Roethlisberger replacement, Steelers 2021 NFL Draft

Ben Roethlisberger on September 15th 2021. Photo Credit: Justin K. Aller, Getty Images

Steelers Depth Cart at Quarterback: The Starter

Ben Roethlisberger’s story is well known. With Pittsburgh on the clock in the 2004 NFL Draft, Bill Cowher was leaning towards Shawn Andrews, but Dan Rooney cocked his arm back imitating a throwing motion and Paul Tagliabue made it official a few minutes later.

  • It’s rare that a franchise quarterback falls into the lap of team with a championship roster.
  • But when it does the team had better capitalize on it. Fast.

Like Steve Young and the 49ers, Ben Roethlisberger delivered, leading the Steelers to victory in Super Bowl XL and Super Bowl XLIII. But like Dan Marino and the Dolphins, as those Super Bowl veterans aged and retired, the Steelers have struggled to rebuild their roster around Roethlisberger.

  • Many fail to appreciate just how close Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin came to pulling it off.
Steelers Killer Bees, Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, Le'Veon Bell

The Steelers Killer Bees were too true to their name. Photo Credit: pegitboard.com

Injuries and ego colluded to prevent The Killer Bees from reaching their potential, while Ryan Shazier’s injury ripped a gaping hole in the middle of the defense.

  • In many ways Ben Roethlisberger’s 2020 season mirrors that same story arc.

No one knew how Roethlisberger would play following elbow surgery. But in the first months of the season, Ben Roethlisberger played some of his best football ever. His release as lightning quick, his short and medium passes exited with laser-like precision.

He was even in the league MVP conversation.

  • Sure, the long ball was an issue.

But Chase Claypool, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson and James Washington all grew pretty adept at drawing pass interference penalties downfield. But then the running game imploded into oblivion. Defenses took away the short pass. Receivers (and tight ends – Eric Ebron) started dropping passes.

  • ACL injuries and COVID-19 ravaged the defense.

As he always did, Roethlisberger’s response was to try to take the team on his shoulders. Something he no longer has the talent to do.

Art Rooney II made it clear he wanted Ben Roethlisberger back, but only at a discount. Ben Roethlisberger agreed, and he took one for the team.

The salary cap has stripped the Steelers of their depth, opening the question of whether Pittsburgh has enough pieces to make a Super Bowl run, but it says here that Ben Roethlisberger showed enough to justify a return in 2021.

Steelers Quarterback Depth Chart: The Backups

Mason Rudolph, Steelers vs Dolphins,

Mason Rudolph launches a 45 yard touchdown to Diontae Johnson. Photo Credit: Barry Reeger, PennLive

Drafted with an extra 3rd round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Mason Rudolph arrived as a potential successor to Roethlisberger. Since then Mason Rudolph has started nine games and logged snaps in 3 more.

  • Results have been mixed.

At times, like during the first half of the Dolphins game or the 2nd Bengals game, Mason Rudolph looked as lost and clueless as Kordell Stewart did in his lowest moments. At other moments, such has his starts against the Rams in ’19 and the Browns in ’21, he looked like a signal caller who could develop into a Neil O’Donnell like starter.

  • The Steelers brass clearly isn’t hanging its hat on the latter scenario coming to fruition.

Otherwise they wouldn’t have brought Ben Roethlisberger back, nor would they have taken a flyer on Dwayne Haskins, a failed former first rounder out of Washington.

The Steelers 2021 Quarterback Draft Needs

steelers, draft, needs, priority, 2018 NFL DraftIn abstract football terms, the Steelers need for a quarterback in the 2021 NFL Draft should be Moderate-High. They’re going to need a starter perhaps as early as 2022, and no sane person would commit to that starter being Rudolph or Haskins.

But, with usual “unless someone falls” caveat, the Steelers aren’t finding that starter drafting so late in the first round.

  • And drafting one in the middle rounds would be akin to drafting another Rudolph or Haskins.

The Steelers have two of those. And really, taking another Tee Martin or Dennis Dixon like flyer in the 5th or 6th round would mean using a pick on a player who can’t help in 2021. Therefore the Steelers need at quarterback going into the 2021 draft should be considered as Low.

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Recent Steelers Third String Quarterback History Shows Mason Rudolph CAN Help Pittsburgh in 2018

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Ben Roethlisberger’s remarks on Mason Rudolph have put the Steelers signal caller firmly into the news. Given where we are in the off season, its all that anyone in Steelers Nation is talking about.

Mason Rudolph, Steelers 2018 3rrd round pick, Steelers third string quarterbacks

Think Mason Rudolph can’t help the Steelers in 2018? Guess again. Photo Credit: John Raoux, AP, via PennLive

Steel Curtain Rising has already taken Ben Roethlisberger to task for his implicit attitude behind his statements on Rudolph. If you haven’t read it already, you can do so here. But there’s another bone to pick with Big Ben’s comments, a bone that’s completely objective in it comes from one of the few seemingly uncontroversial things he said:

Nothing against Mason. I think he’s a great football player. I don’t know him personally, but I’m sure he’s a great kid. I just don’t know how backing up or being a third [string] — well, who knows where he’s going to fall on the depth chart — helps us win now. [Emphasis added]

OF all of Roethlisberger’s remarks on Rudolph, his assertion in bold is likeliest to elicit a “Well, he’s got a point there” nod from even his harshest critics. Because on the surface it’s hard to dispute his logic. After all, third string quarterbacks don’t do much, even in practice, right?

Third string quarterbacks rarely earn even footnotes in football history. For most of their history, the Steelers offer no exception. When was the last time you saw a parent-child combo strutting around Heinz Field sporting Rick Strom and Brian St. Pierre jerseys on throwback weekend?

  • But in this case, experience trumps logic, and Ben’s own history with the Steelers shows his claim about Steelers 3rd string quarterbacks is wrong.

Think back to the Steelers 2005 season that culminated with victory in Super Bowl XL. That Super Bowl season saw the Steelers start their third string quarterback twice, as Tommy Maddox and Charlie Batch started four games that season.

Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers Jaguars Playoffs, Steelers vs Jaguars

Ben Roethlisberger after Jacksonville loss. Photo Credit: Chaz Palla, Tribune-Review

  • Its almost certainly as coincidental as it is ironic but Steelers third string quarterbacks have enjoyed their moment in the sun during the Roethlisberger era.

We covered much of this ground on the eve of the 2015 season when justifying Landry Jones roster spot in the face of fans who felt he should have been cast aside in favor of Mike Vick. Let’s spell it out in Black and Gold again:

  • In 2005, Charlie Batch and Tommy Maddox both saw starts after holding the QB number 3 designation
  • In 2006, third string quarterback Dennis Dixon started against the Ravens
  • In 2010, Charlie Batch started games against Tampa Bay and Baltimore as the third stringer
  • In 2012, a Byron Leftwich injury again thrust Charlie Batch from 3rd to first as Batch started two games
  • In 2015, injuries and ineffectiveness of Mike Vick elevated Landry Jones from 3rd stringer to starter

Just looking at the math, during the Roethlisberger era about every third season has seen a Steelers third string quarterbacks suit up as a starter….

…And two full seasons have elapsed since that last occurred.

Past performance may not predict future results, but it would behoove Ben Roethlisberger to do what he can to get Mason Rudolph ready to play sooner rather than later.

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Steelers Draft Joshua Dobbs, Quarterback, Tennessee – The “Shouldn’t Have Been” Surprise

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“Steelers Draft Josh Dobbs, in 4th round, quarterback, Tennessee.”

Raise your hand if you were both surprised and dumbfounded by the Steelers 4th round draft pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. (Mine’s raised.)

Raise your hand if you felt the Steelers had far more pressing needs to address with a pick as valuable as a 4th round draft selection. (Mine’s raised.)

Raise your hand if you felt that, given Ben Roethlisberger’s sentiments towards retirement, you felt that ALL of the Steelers 2017 draft capital should be devoted giving ben the weapons and players need to bring home one last Lombardi before Big Ben begins his “Life’s Work.” (Mine is STILL raised.)

  • If you’re hand has been raised, then you’ve likely got a lot of company in Steelers Nation.
Steelers draft Josh Dobbs, Joshua Dobbs

Steelers 2017 4th round pick Joshua Dobbs, former Tennessee Volunteer. Photo Credit: Jamie Squire, Getty Images

But you know what? All of us should have known this was coming back in January. Why argue that? Look no further than to the words of Pittsburgh Steelers President Art Rooney II who declared, “We haven’t drafted a quarterback for several years now, so we’re probably due to look at the position.”

  • While the Steelers President didn’t quite commit to anything, there’s also not a lot of ambiguity in Art II’s words.

As Observer-Reporter scribe Dale Lolley put those words into context for his readers, offering, “The Steelers will likely take a shot at a quarterback in the middle rounds of this year’s draft, much like they did with Jones a few years ago.”

Which is exactly what happened.

  • Let’s be clear, given the Steelers needs at inside linebacker and tight end, Steel Curtain Rising isn’t on board with using a 4th round pick on a quarterback.

But, as we’ve admitted more than once in recent days, there’s a reason why Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin are drafting players, and yours truly is blogging. After the Steelers disastrous 2008 NFL Draft, the one player that this site took issue with was the pick of Dennis Dixon.

And while it’s true that Dennis Dixon never developed into the replacement quarterback for Charlie Batch, he did compile a 2-1 record as a starter, which isn’t bad for a 5th round pick.

Reviewing the Steelers Pick of Josh Dobbs on Its Merits

Necessary or not, Josh Dobbs is now a Pittsburgh Steeler. Dobbs brings the Steelers a 22-13 record, and combines strong arm strength with excellent mobility and an ability to throw well under pressure. While at Tennessee, Dobbs also earned a degree in Astrospace Engineering, which is not something you see every day in the NFL.

As Dobbs highlight reel reveals, excellent football players can indeed by smart:

When asked why he’s subjecting his body (and potentially his mind) to the rigors of playing football, Dobbs offered this:

I love the game of football. I have loved it since I played it when I was five. My mom signed me up at five years old, when we were running around in helmets bigger than your body. Football is all I know. Going to college, I could have played football or baseball, but I chose football because that was the sport I couldn’t see myself not playing. I love the game. I give it all, every time I step onto the field. It’s great to have a backup plan for 15 years down the road when I can’t play football. But until that day, I am giving it all to the sport I love.

When ask for his take on the Steelers 2017 fourth round selection Neal Coolong, Founder of NFL Wire Network which is part of USA Today Digital Properties, provided this evaluation:

Joshua Dobbs is a nice prospect. I see more in him than I did or do Landry Jones. Brings a nice athletic element. Forces competition for Landry Jones’s job next year, the final year of his contract, and they’d have him cheap for two years after that. While I can’t say overall I’m thrilled with the position they selected, I don’t mind Dobbs in the fourth.

So be it. Like it or not, the Steelers made Joshua Dobbs their 4th round pick. As noted a year ago when evaluating Kevin Colbert’s history with 4th round draft picks, the 4th round represents the balance point of the draft.

In time, we’ll know which direction Joshua Dobbs will go in. For now we’ll simply say Welcome to Steelers Nation Mr. Dobbs.

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Like It Or Not: Steelers Will Live and Die with Landry Jones Until Ben Roethlisberger Returns

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Pittsburgh Steelers fans had better get used to the sight of Landry Jones with his hands under Maurkice Pouncey’s but, as they’ll see it  week vs. New England and, if reports are correct, perhaps beyond that.

Not that concern isn’t warranted. This was a Steelers team that came close to upsetting the New England Patriots team in the 2015 season opener and has been itching for a rematch faster than you can say “HeadsetGate.”

steelers backup quarterbacks, landry jones

Like or not, Steelers Nation must get used to seeing Landry Jones under center

So fans’ desire for Ben Roethlisberger rise from the trainers bench, al la the Karate Kid, are well founded:

But if the longing for John Norwig to morph into Mr. Miyagi is understandable, the calls to start Zach Mettenberger or even more outlandish suggestions that the Steelers trade for Mark Sanchez, are not. For better and for worse, the Steelers will live and die with Landry Jones as their signal caller for as long as it takes for Ben Roethlisberger’s knee to heal.

There are lots of reasons for this, but everyone overlooks the biggest one….

Steelers Nation Keeps Up with the Changing Times

Bob Labriola and other members of Steelers Nation’s “4th Estate” have derided the outcry to immediately purge Landry Jones form the roster. And they’ve got the right reaction, unless you really think that Peyton Manning, Johnny Manziel or Tim Tebow would do better.

But if the sarcasim of the Labriola’s of the world is justified, then you also must credit these Steelers fans for being smart about one thing: They know a franchise quarterback when they see one.

Seriously.

From 1984 to 2004 the most popular player on the Steelers roster was whoever was backing up Mark Malone, Bubby Brister or Kordell Stewart. Neil O’Donnell won a bit of a respite, but even he heard calls to start Mike Tomczak in mid-1994. (Tommy Maddox was around long enough.) But between Terry Bradshaw and Ben Roethlisberger’s time, if the backup quarterback wasn’t the most popular player in Pittsburgh, he certainly earned an honorable mention.

That’s has changed, and as well as it should, but “Landry Jones Anxiety” also reflects another more recent change.

Steelers Nation Appreciates What It Had When Its Gone

Since the beginning of the Bill Cowher Era the composition of the Steelers quarterback has remained pretty predictable: A designated starter, an experienced backup, and an up and comer.

The Steelers coaching staff and front office, whether it’s been headed by Tom Donahoe or Kevin Colbert, believe in experienced backups but have repeatedly tried to staff the 3rd string quarterback position with a player they can nurture into a backup. During the 1990’s they tried, unsuccessfully, with Mike Quinn, Pete Gonzalez and Anthony Wright. In the 00’s the Steelers tried it with Brian St. Pierre and a slew of 5th round draft picks.

  • The closest they got was with Dennis Dixon, who started 3 games for the Steelers, but he never matured into a stable backup.

Landry Jones is the first to achieve that status, and he’s unlikely to lose it save for an injury or a meltdown.

Mike Tomlin Stands By His Quarterbacks

Fans hoping to see Landry Jones on a short, or even medium leash can hold their breath for one simple reason: Rightly or wrongly, Mike Tomlin stands behind his quarterbacks. Going into his 10th year as head coach, Mike Tomlin has never pulled or benched a starting quarterback because of performance. Tomlin is loyal, sometimes to a fault, to his quarterbacks.

In both 2011 and 2012, Mike Tomlin had an experienced, healthy Charlie Batch standing on the sideline as his starter struggled, noticeably limited by injury, but Tomlin kept Roethlisberger and Leftwich in.

  • Given that precedent, it is hardly likely that Tomlin will turn over his offense to newly arrived Zack Mettenberger, who has yet to throw a pass for the Steelers in preseason.

Love it or hate it, the Steelers will live and die with Landry Jones until Ben gets back.

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Panthers Bouncing Brandon Boykin Reinforces Fundamental Fact: Kevin Colbert Makes Good Decisions

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Steelers OTA’s will bring a week of fresh news to Steelers Nation, as last week’s biggest “Steelers story” was the Carolina Panthers cutting Brandon Boykin less than two months after signing him to a one year $840,000 contract in favor of Shaquille Richardson.

  • Someday a college professor somewhere will write a paper about the role that the internet and social media play in sustaining Steelers Nation.

In the early ‘90’s a story like the Boykins, outside of Pittsburgh, would have merited maybe a line at two the “Transactions” column crammed at the back of a sports page. Don’t believe me? That’s how the Boston Globe treated the Panther’s decision to cut Barry Foster after the Steelers had traded him.

  • Today every Steelers site dutifully wrote their “Panthers cut former Steeler Brandon Boykin”  post
  • Steelers Nation simultaneously debated the decision on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and SnapChat.

So be it. This isn’t a Watch Tower post, but rather one that shows how the Boykin story illustrates a basic point:

  • Kevin Colbert usually makes good personnel decisions.

Ah you say, but what about Dri Archer and Shamarko Thomas to name two recent, high profile draft day disappointments?

Fair enough. Kevin Colbert doubtlessly would like to have both draft picks back. But NFL drafting success is part art, part science and part blind luck. But when it comes to evaluating the talent on the Steelers roster, Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin are pretty good decision makers.

When Brandon Boykin signed with the Panthers, large swaths of Steelers Nation reacted as if the Steelers had just lost Rod Blount Boykin, to use a phrase coined by Dale Lolley. A case could be made for keeping Boykin, but he was no Rod Woodson or Mel Blount. Nor was he an Ike Taylor or even a Deshea Townsend.

  • Pittsburgh’s decision to go all in on Senquez Golson, Doran Grant and an unnamed draft pick (now Artie Burns) certainly carries risk for Steelers 2016 title hopes.

But now Ron Rivera and Dave Gettleman, two guys who just took their team to the Super Bowl, have made decided to trust in Shaquille Richardson over Brandon Boykin. Richardson, if you’ll remember, was the Steelers 2014 5th round draft pick who got cut in training camp and has yet to play a down of NFL football.

  • None of this should suggest that Kevin Colbert remains immune from making personnel mistakes.

That is hardly the case. The Steelers let Ryan Mundy go in 2013 and if his stat sheet is any guide, he’s had two solid seasons in New York and Chicago. That same off season, the Steelers gave up on Willie Colon due to his injury history and opted not to renew Doug Legursky’s contract. You’d better believe that when Maurkice Pouncey was lost for the year and Mike Adams couldn’t cut it at right tackle, Mike Tomlin wished he’d had either Colon or Legursky at his disposal

  • Keenan Lewis is another player the Steelers let get away in the 2013 off season that they wish they could have back.

But the decisions to let Mundy, Colon, Lewis and to some extent Legursky walk were as much or almost as much the result of salary cap restrictions as they were results of talent evaluations. That doesn’t exempt Colbert from criticism, because a general manager has to make those choices.

  • But outside of Lewis, Colon and Mundy, you’d be hard pressed to find someone the Steelers cut who thrived elsewhere.

What about Kraig Urbik?

Urbik is certainly one of the “ Ones that got away” from the Steelers 2009 draft class, but the Steelers wanted to keep Urbik, but were forced to expose him to the wavier wire because Byron Leftwich’s injury forced the Steelers to keep Charlie Batch on the roster during Ben Roethlisberger’s 2010 suspension. Urbik’s started 57 games for the Bills over the last six seasons, but the Steelers decision to keep Batch looked pretty smart when Dennis Dixon went down in week 2.

Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin may miss on draft picks. They might overestimate the development potential of a player, such as Cortez Allen. They might trade for guys who disappoint, such as Levi Brown, Felix Jones or…. Brandon Boykin.

But when the Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin let a guy go, its not too often you’ll see the guy make a name for himself elsewhere.

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Steelers Resign Bruce Gradkowski, Who’ll Compete with Landry Jones for QB No. 2 Slot

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Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert seemingly left the door open for the Steelers to pick a quarterback during the 2016 NFL Draft, but when the picks where in a quarterback was not among them. Nor did the Steelers bring a quarterback in with their 2016 undrafted rookie free agent class. Then word broke that Brian Hoyer, whom the Steelers liked, signed with the Bears.

  • The stars seemed to align for a Bruce Gradkowski return and it appears that will happen.

Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review is reporting that the Steelers have resigned Bruce Gradkowski to a one year deal. The move comes with a bit of a twist, as the Gradkowski will apparently have to compete with Landry Jones for the right to backup Ben Roethlisberger.

This development hardly comes as a surprise, as Gradkowski’s repeated last summer caused Steelers Digest Editor Bob Labriola to compare Gradkowski to Byron Leftwich. As Steel Curtain Rising argued when it made the case for Gradkowski’s return, Charlie Batch also bore the “brittle” label, yet proved to be more durable than either Leftwich your youngster Dennis Dixon.

Gradkowski is a Pittsburgh native, hailing from Green Tree and is a graduate from Seton-La Salle. He’s been in the league since 2006, having played for Tampa Bay, Cleveland, Oakland and Cincinnati before landing in Pittsburgh in 2013. Gradkowski has not thrown a pass in a regular season Steelers game, but did look sharp in relief of Ben Roethlisberger in the Steelers 2014 playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

While Landry Jones improved tremendously in 2015, ultimately unseating Michael Vick as the Steelers QB number 2, his play in the Steelers playoff win vs. the Bengals left a lot to be desired. In addition to Roethlisberger, Jones and Gradkowski, the Steelers also have Dustin Vaughan on their roster.

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Steelers Free Agent Analysis Bruce Gradkowski – The Case for Keeping Gradkowski in Pittsburgh

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The Pittsburgh Steelers have looming decisions to make on over 20 unrestricted free agents to make, and few will prove to be more interesting than the one they make on backup quarterback Bruce Gradkowski.

Capsule Profile of Bruce Gradkowski’s Career with the Steelers

Todd Haley’s inaugural season as the Steelers offensive coordinator saw Pittsburgh start three quarterbacks: Ben Roethlisberger, Byron Leftwich, and Charlie Batch. Leftwich played OK in one game and got hurt in another. Batch played poorly vs. Cleveland and then led the Steelers to a dramatic upset on the road vs. the eventual Super Bowl Champion Ravens.

Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert had seen enough, and signed Bruce Gradkowski as a free agent, and they drafted Landry Jones in the 2013 NFL Draft. Ben Roethlisberger took every snap in the 2013 regular season and no other quarterback threw a pass in the 2014 regular season.

Gradkowski’s number was called in the Steelers playoff loss to the Ravens….

The Case for Steelers Keeping Bruce Gradkowski

The case for keeping Bruce Gradkowski comes down to this: 2-3-22-0-0.

That was Gradkowski’s stat line from his only action under center for the Steelers. Yes, that is mundane, but it came in the 4th quarter of a playoff game, and the Steelers offense didn’t miss a beat.

Now take a look at this stat line: 2-5-11-0-1

The first job of a backup quarterback is to not lose the game. Bruce Gradkowski only saw spot duty in the playoffs, but he didn’t blink.

Landry Jones blinked, big time.

The Case Against Steelers Keeping Bruce Gradkowski

Bruce Gradkowski is turning 33, and he entered training camp on the PUP list, got activated, and then injured in his only action. The sole premise of a having a backup is to have someone who is reliable, and Gradkowski couldn’t stay healthy for more than a week.

Curtain’s Call on Steelers and Bruce Gradkowski

Those who think that Gradkowski’s injury history should make the Steelers decision an open and shut case would be wise to consider this story:

There once was a 30 year old backup quarterback who had only seen spot duty in games for the Steelers over two seasons.

Early in 2004 training camp this 30 year old quarterback broke his leg and was out for the year. The backup returned in 2005, 2006, and 2007 delivered when called upon. However, in 2008 he broke his collar bone in Steelers preseason opener and was out for the season. In 2009, he came in during overtime after concussion, but managed to break his wrist by extending his arm to break a fall.

  • At this point, with another veteran and a young and up and comer behind him, this frail, aging quarterback seemed to be done.

The Steelers indeed planned to cut him, but the veteran got injured. So the young and up and comer started while Ben Roethlisberger served his suspension. Then the young up and comer (Dennis Dixon) got hurt.

  • So this quarterback who was too old and too fragile stepped in and delivered 2 wins for the Steelers.

A year later, the same situation evolved, with this veteran quarterback on the outside looking in. Except the young-up-and-comer got hurt in training camp. The veteran, who was too old and too injury prone was the last man standing, literally. And if you haven’t figured it out already, that is Charlie Batch.

Ed Bouchette has good sources inside the Steelers organization, so he could very well be reporting what he has been told off the record. IT says here that the Steelers medical staff knows a lot more about Bruce Gradkowski’s health than Steel Curtain Rising does. And there are viable veteran backups available in free agency.

But, if he’s healthy, the Steelers should consider bringing Gradkowski back.

Free agency go your head spinning? Check out our Steelers 2016 free agent tracker and/or click here to read all articles on our Steelers 2016 Free Agent Focus section. 

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