The Pittsburgh Steelers released an initial depth chart on Monday, which included officially naming Mitch Trubisky as the starting quarterback for Week 1. That came as no surprise, as Trubisky has been the clear and obvious frontrunner throughout training camp and into the preseason. Kenny Pickett, the first-round rookie, quietly made things interesting toward the end of the preseason.
Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Mitch Trubisky (#10) throwing a pass during a preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday, August 13, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Photo by: Abigail Dean/Pittsburgh Steelers
Pickett was impressive, but so was Trubisky, so the coaching staff stuck with the veteran to start against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. To everyone's surprise on Monday, Mason Rudolph was listed as the second-string quarterback over the rookie. ESPN's Steelers beat writer, Brooke Pryor, caught wind of this on Tuesday morning.
New Steelers depth chart via @SteelersPRBurt has Kenny Pickett as QB2. Mitch Trubisky still QB1. pic.twitter.com/YIcVXAGaXQ
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) September 6, 2022
It's unclear as to what happened there, as something in practice certainly wouldn't have changed the battle for the backup position in the matter of a day. Perhaps they simply made a typo, or maybe they are feeding into the uncertainty. Elsewhere on the depth chart, there doesn't seem to be any other changes from the one released on Monday. Rookie running back Jaylen Warren listed as the primary backup to Najee Harris came as a bit of a surprise.
Pickett has downright earned his duties as the primary backup quarterback to Trubisky. While Rudolph hasn't been bad by any means, the two in front of him have simply been better. Despite the trade rumors throughout the preseason, including being linked to the Detroit Lions, Omar Khan and the front office ended up keeping him. The asking price seemed to be too high, and it's not necessarily a bad thing. With the suspect offensive line, the black and gold may just need to use three quarterbacks this season.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph (2) during a preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks, Saturday, Aug.13, 2022 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Abigail Dean/Pittsburgh Steelers)
When will Pickett start this season? Was it the right decision to keep Mason Rudolph on the team? Share your thoughts in the comment section below, and be sure to do the same on our social media sites!
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