The Pittsburgh Steelers signed veteran quarterback and former number 2 overall pick Mitch Trubisky this off-season to come in and compete to be the successor of future first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger. In a competition that consists of Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, and Kenny Pickett for the Steelers, Trubisky has found himself getting QB1 reps in Organized Team Activities (OTAs) and minicamp.
Trubisky sat down with Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to talk about the rest of the off-season, other Steelers' quarterbacks, and more!
Steelers' QB Mitch Trubisky makes a pass in OTA's (Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)
"So from here, you’re going back down to Boca Raton for the rest of your off-season?"
"Yeah, on Monday I’m headed back down to Boca to train down there with Mike Barwis, his facility, and I’ll have a quarterbacks coach flying in and out to get some work throwing.""Maybe some teammates will be trickling in and out. We’ll see. If they come to the house, got to teach them to change some diapers, help out around the house, wake up early."
"It made a lot of headlines the first day of OTAs when you said the Steelers didn't tell you they were going to draft a guy, but would you expect a team to tell a free agent that anyway?"
"It’s not really a big deal. I think a lot of teams wouldn’t tell a quarterback that in any situation."
Quarterback Kenny Pickett, center, the Pittsburgh Steelers first-round NFL football draft pick, poses for a photo with head coach Mike Tomlin, left, and president/owner Art Rooney II, at the team's training facility in Pittsburgh, Friday, April 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
On if he was watching the 2022 NFL Draft, Trubisky responded:
"I had it on, but I was doing other stuff. It was the last thing in the back of my mind, but at the same time, I expected it. Because any situation I was going into, I wanted to go into a room where I could compete for a starting job. I knew the teams I was looking to go to would probably add a quarterback in the draft, as well. I wasn't blind-sided at all or anything. It’s something I expected and something you welcome. It’s awesome having young guys in the room, young guys who ask questions and work hard, and we’re looking to build a great quarterback room. It’s exciting for Kenny that he was able to go from Pitt to Pittsburgh, and we’ve built a great quarterback room so far. It’s been awesome working with him, Mason, and Chris [Oladokun]. I know people like to run with those headlines, but it really wasn't that big of a deal. It didn't matter who was in my quarterback room. I was gonna come in with the mindset that I’m here to compete and lead a team to go win games."
Did it bother Trubisky that Rudolph didn't come to his home to train with other teammates?
"No, I kind of figured. It seemed like a business decision at the time, and we hadn’t met in person, so I didn't know if he wanted to come down there and meet for the first time. But no, it’s just a part of it. You’re just trying to meet everybody on the team, but guys have off-season schedules that they’re busy with, so it wasn’t really that big of a deal. But he’s been awesome. We have a pretty quiet quarterback room right now. I’m trying to get the guys to open up and be more vocal."
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers motions from the line of scrimmage against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on November 01, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)
"And Ben probably brought a different swagger to that room as an 18-year vet and a two-time Super Bowl winner…"
"You’ve got to. You’ve got to. I think the more experience you have, the more comfortable you are to just be yourself, ask those questions and have those conversations. [Quarterbacks Coach Mike] Sullivan says it all the time, a noisy quarterback room is a good quarterback room. Because you're having those conversations and you're talking good football. You want those conversations because they stimulate growth. They stimulate learning opportunities within the room, so that’s why you want a noisy room, you know?"
On his experience in the city of Pittsburgh so far and learning to be a "yinzer":
"The people have been very nice, very welcoming to me and my wife. I do get noticed a good bit walking around, but it’s just been very positive, welcoming people. They’ve been super nice wherever I’ve gone. They don’t bother me, or it’s not intrusive, just very down-to-earth people. They love football and I love football, so it’s going to be a great match. I’ve really enjoyed living in Pittsburgh so far, and I know my wife loves it, as well. I haven’t learned too many yinzers words, besides ‘yinzer.’ But my son’s a yinzer. He’ll always be born in Pittsburgh, so it definitely means a lot to me already."
Instagram: @hill_trubisky
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