While the wait on Aaron Rodgers continues in Pittsburgh, Mason Rudolph has been quietly working.
The veteran quarterback isn't paying attention to the rumblings regarding Rodgers, knowing he can't control how the Steelers construct their roster, anyway.
"That's nothing new to me. There's been constant noise," Rudolph said, via the team's official site. "That is the nature of the NFL. So I am used to that for a long time. Now I'm doing nothing but being the best I can be to help our team get better this spring."
Rudolph has filled a vital role for Pittsburgh during the offseason, providing the Steelers with a veteran who can take starting reps during organized team activities, which began Tuesday, and June's minicamp. With Rodgers taking his sweet time to decide on his future, Rudolph has proven invaluable and earned the respect of his teammates, who point to their confidence in Rudolph when asked if the ongoing Rodgers situation is becoming a distraction.
Their confidence in Rudolph isn't blind. The veteran spent his formative years with the Steelers and was tossed into action on short notice on more than one occasion. Just two seasons ago, he was elevated from the bottom of the depth chart to the starting job with their playoff hopes on the line. Rudolph then led them to three straight wins to close the season and propel Pittsburgh to a once-unlikely postseason berth.
"We won games down the stretch there, at an important time," Rudolph said of their late-season run in 2023. "And I just think we played complimentary football. And, you know, the more time I spend in the NFL, you learn that it takes complimentary football, special teams, offense, defense. (Mike Tomlin) put the statistics up today. I think we were the last two years, top two, No. 2, No. 3, in turnover margin here. So that comes from the culture that Mike T. has created with ball-search and ball-security, and so that's something we're all working towards."
The Steelers rewarded Rudolph by letting him walk to Tennessee in free agency. A year later -- and with few options under center -- Pittsburgh wisely brought Rudolph back with the plans to make him a trusted backup.
With each week that passes with Rodgers still unsigned, Pittsburgh only looks wiser for bringing back Rudolph. The Steelers' only remaining hope is that he doesn't end up being their only option.
