Denver Broncos fans don’t want to see another ‘stopgap’ quarterback under
“Think about this, Sean Payton doesn’t need a mobile quarterback,” Whaley told host Paul Alexander. “That type of offense, timing, precise accuracy type thing, every once in and while, a calculated deep shot, it kind of fits what he does. This guy [Rudolph] will be a legitimate stop gap, the way he’s playing right now. “
Rudolph was Pittsburgh’s third-round pick back in 2018 out of Oklahoma State. He was the sixth quarterback drafted that year, following the likes of Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, and Lamar Jackson.
The 6-foot-5, 235-pound signal-caller started 13 games in Pittsburgh, going 8-4-1. Rudolph won all three games the Steelers asked him to start down the stretch this season. He’s set to start on Sunday vs. the Bills in the Wildcard Round of the playoffs, so depending on how the Steelers do, Rudolph has the chance to build his value around the NFL.
For his career, the 28-year-old Rudolph has a 63.5 completion percentage with 3,085 passing yards and 19 touchdowns, with 11 interceptions. Starting off as Pittsburgh’s third-string QB this season behind Pickett and Mitchell Trubisky, Rudolph tossed three touchdowns in 2023 and finished the campaign with zero interceptions.
After watching Pickett’s painful attempts at quarterbacking a low-production offense and Trubisky losing both of his starts this season amid too many turnovers, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin turned the keys over to Rudolph in late December.
So far, Rudolph has made his coach look good, and it’s possible the Steelers opt to try retaining the QB as their own ‘stopgap,’ especially with Pickett, the 2022 first-rounder, failing to fully launch, despite his 14-10 record as a starter. The more Rudolph increases his value, the less likely the Broncos would be to pursue him, due to the current projections of the team being $30 million over the salary cap for 2024.
