Mason Rudolph doesn't know if he'll be throwing passes on "Sunday Night Football" or holding a clipboard for Ben Roethlisberger this weekend in Los Angeles, but either way, he insists he's ready for either scenario.
"That's the battle between self and team, I think. ... At the end of the freaking day, what matters is the team and going out and winning the game," Rudolph said after practice Thursday, as Roethlisberger remains on the reserve/COVID-19 list three days before facing the Chargers. "Regardless of who's playing the quarterback position, the Steelers, we want to win."
It's just a bit of an awkward dance for Rudolph, who may or may not be preparing to start in a pivotal game for AFC playoff position. He may or may not be called upon to play in prime time, and he might not even know until the morning of the game.
But Rudolph didn't complain, or even hint that it would be nice for the coaching staff to commit to him until Roethlisberger is fully healthy. He simply called it the nature of his position as the backup, and that whatever happens, he'll roll with it.
"That's all I can do is try to prove myself again this week, if I get the opportunity," Rudolph said. "If not, support the crap out of Ben and our team."
After Rudolph and the Steelers tied the Lions at 16 last weekend, coach Mike Tomlin claimed afterward that their game plan didn't change in the 24-hour whirlwind period of Roethlisberger being ruled out and Rudolph becoming the starter.
But Thursday morning, offensive coordinator Matt Canada acknowledged a "restructuring" of the offensive approach from Saturday to Sunday, from Roethlisberger to Rudolph.
"Our plan is what it was. Mason had a lot of reps in our plan," Canada said, referring to Roethlisberger sitting out practice last Wednesday and Thursday. "But in the way we believe is right, if we have six plays on 3rd-and-6, Ben may see one and like it the best — I think that's important. And Mason may like one differently. So, we kind of restructured a little bit that way, as far as things he liked. But what the players had practiced and what he'd done, we kind of went from there and moved forward."
Now they'll move forward without Roethlisberger again, though with the knowledge that he could still be active and could still play Sunday night in Los Angeles. But this time, they'll have much more notice and thus much more time to craft a winning scheme for Rudolph, specifically, from start to finish.
The way that it all worked for Canada is that Roethlisberger gave him a heads-up last Saturday that he wasn't feeling well and was going to get a COVID-19 test. At that point, Canada jumped into more of a game-planning mode with Rudolph, who hadn't yet started a regular-season game with Canada calling the plays.
Canada noted that because of Roethlisberger's usual day off on Wednesday, Rudolph receives more practice snaps than most backups around the league. But he also knows that while NFL quarterbacks are expected to be able to make every throw, some are better at certain throws than others, which is why the play selection matters.
"Some guys love throwing outs. Some guys don't like them as well. ... There's a fact involved of what you see well," Canada said. "It's almost like when you talk about a golfer. Some holes he hits it down the middle. Same driver, different hole, [different result]."
For all of his inconsistency the past couple years, one of Roethlisberger's strong suits has been his work in the red zone. Only seven teams converted touchdowns more often inside the 20 than the Steelers last year, and with Roethlisberger this year, that number is still in the top half of the league at 61.9%.
But with Rudolph, who also didn't lead a scoring drive in the preseason, the Steelers found the end zone on just 1 of 3 red-zone visits against the league's worst red-zone defense. Small sample size, sure, but Rudolph had a chance when he skipped a throw to Ray-Ray McCloud for what would've been a 5-yard touchdown in the third quarter — the final play of a maddening sequence in which the Steelers threw three times on first-and-goal, albeit with a run-pass option for Rudolph on first down (and Rudolph counted too many Lions at the line of scrimmage to run it).
"I'm never going to get into a specific play — what happened, who's right. It's all on me," Canada said. "We didn't get it in the end zone. Inside this building we'll talk, and we critique. Everyone knows what needs to happen. ... I take that on me. Calls are what they are. If they don't work, they don't work. If they do, they do. It's always about the players and putting them in the right position to make plays. We have to continue to work at that. Our staff does a great job and I've got to make sure I do a better job to get it done."
In the meantime, Roethlisberger has met virtually with Canada and quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan every day. It sounds as if he's not having as much formal interaction with his teammates, although wide receiver James Washington and tight end Pat Freiermuth said they've communicated with him but will keep the details private.
If Roethlisberger steps out of the quarantine phone booth within the next 48 hours or so, it will be much like last year's run-up to the home game against the Bengals. He spent that whole week on the COVID-19 list as a close contact, but was cleared by Sunday and threw for 333 yards with four touchdowns in a 36-10 win.
If not, the spotlight again will be on Rudolph, who has found out over three years exactly how harsh that can be.
"Every opportunity is a chance to prove to my teammates and to our coaches that I want to be a starter, can be a starter," Rudolph said. "I'm not going to put any pressure on it more than I did [last] Sunday, or practice today. I'm my own hardest critic, at times to a fault, but I'm excited about it if I'm the guy."
