Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is sticking with the hot hand at quarterback.
Tomlin said at his weekly press conference Monday at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex that even though Kenny Pickett has been medically cleared to return, the Steelers will stay with Mason Rudolph at quarterback when the team plays its regular season finale at Baltimore on Saturday.
Tomlin's decision comes on the heels of Rudolph, who had been the team's third quarterback for most of this season, leading the Steelers (9-7) to two consecutive victories, the latest being a 30-23 win Sunday in Seattle.
"I think Kenny's availability is less in question this week. I anticipate him being available to practice," Tomlin said. "That being said, we're going to leave the ball in Mason Rudolph's hands. He's done a good job and we've done a good job in the most recent two weeks. We've taken care of the ball. He's taken care of the ball. We scored points at a rate in which we hadn't done to this point this year. With the urgency of the moment and because of those reasons, we're gonna leave the ball in his hands."
Rudolph completed 18 of 24 passes for 274 yards and the Steelers rushed for 202 yards in the win over the Seahawks Sunday. That came one week after Rudolph threw for 290 yards and a pair of scores in a 34-11 win against Cincinnati at Acrisure Stadium in his first start after replacing Mitch Trubisky. Trubisky had started the previous two games, both losses, in place of Pickett.
"He's done a nice job," Tomlin said of Rudolph, who has been with the team since it made him a third-round draft pick in 2018. "He's got a great deal of confidence in himself, and it is real. I think it's contagious. He's aggressive in style of play. And I think that's helpful, particularly when you're up against it. The calculated risk taking associated with the pursuit of victory is important. And he's displayed those things, but it's more than that.
"Obviously, what he has done is what we have done or that collective has done, we ran the ball extremely well over the last two weeks. We've been in manageable possession down circumstances. We've run the ball well in the red area, particularly yesterday, three rushing touchdowns (inside the 20). You know, you're not absorbing a lot of risk when you are performing in that way. And so it's just been a good trend for us. I desire to keep that trend rolling."
Pickett, the team's starter in its first 12 games this season, has practiced on a limited basis in each of the past two weeks as he continues to recover from an ankle surgery performed Dec. 4. But he's been inactive the past two games as Trubisky has served as Rudolph's backup.
"That clarity didn't come until later in the week," Tomlin said of Pickett's status against Seattle. "And it was about the distribution of reps and who was best prepared in position to to help us win. And so that's the direction that we went."
But Tomlin said Pickett could be used as the backup in Saturday's game against the Ravens (13-3), who wrapped up the top seed in the AFC playoffs with a win Sunday against the Dolphins.
"I know Kenny is very capable, and particularly as it pertains to this matchup," said Tomlin. "Kenny has led us to victory late in the game the last two times we play Baltimore, and so we feel like we have got two capable guys. We will proceed into the week the same way that we did last week, but just knowing that his availability is less than in question to play by the medical folks for this past game."
With the Steelers best opportunity to earn a spot into the postseason being a win against the Ravens, Tomlin isn't concerned with long-term development or anything more than securing a victory this week.
The same goes for Pickett.
"He is a competitor," Tomlin said. "He wants the football, he wants to play. But at the same time, he's a team player. And so, our agenda is winning football games right now. So I imagine that's everyone's mindset."
Preparing for their best: The Steelers and Ravens go into their Week 18 matchup in two very different positions.
The Ravens have already secured a playoff berth and the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC.
The Steelers are fighting for a spot in the postseason, first and foremost needing a win and then a little bit of help along the way.
With the Ravens in solid position, Coach John Harbaugh was asked following their win over the Miami Dolphins if he will sit quarterback Lamar Jackson this week.
"I've given a lot of thought to it, and it was all hypothetical until just now," said Harbaugh. "I'm sure I'll talk to Lamar, and I'm sure he's going to want to play. But, we're going to have to talk about that and decide what we want to do. You can only take six players out of the equation. There's going to be injuries anyway, so it's not like the preseason. You're playing your team except for whoever you end up taking out. We're going to have to have the conversation. We have not made any decision there yet."
Tomlin knows the potential of resting a player or two does exist, but they are preparing this week for a fully stocked Ravens roster, including Jackson who is one of the best at what he does.
"We prepare for what they're capable of. We prepare for their best," said Tomlin. "So that makes that conversation less significant. We better be prepared to defend the best of them or stop the best of them. And a component of what they do is schematics and it's not necessarily people, and so we better be ready for the schematic component of what they do."
Jackson is coming off an amazing performance against the Dolphins, with 321 passing yards and five touchdowns. But against the Steelers, Jackson hasn't had the best of luck. The black and gold owns a 3-1 record against him as a starter.
The reason is simple.
"Because we respect him. We respect his talents," said Tomlin. "We respect what he's capable of. And we work all week with that level of urgency and prep. So, we better do some of the things this week."
Short week not an issue: The Steelers were flying across the country when the clock struck 12 to ring in the new year last night, just a short time after the team got notice of when they will play their Week 18 game against the Baltimore Ravens.
The two teams will meet on Saturday at 4:30 p.m., on ABC/ESPN, and that means one thing for the Steelers.
A short week after a long trip.
But Tomlin isn't concerned.
"We have no reaction," said Tomlin. "You give us a date and time, game location and opponent, we'll be there.
"That's what we do.
"There's a certain level of anticipation regarding it. I've been in the league a while. I kind of know how these things might unfold. It's insignificant."
Tomlin said it will be the coaching staff that will be impacted the most by the short week, having to do a lot of their preparation earlier in the week.
From a team preparation standpoint though, it won't have any impact.
"We'll be challenged at the front part of the week from a from a coaching strategy standpoint," said Tomlin. "It won't affect our physical prep in terms of it being a short week. We're familiar with them. When they first started playing Thursday night games, it was oftentimes the second time you played the division opponent, because that strategy component of the familiarity from a planning perspective is more fluid. So, that's probably our mindset and my mindset regarding this. It is a short week, but it's a highly familiar opponent.
"Really, who is being inconvenienced are the coaches in terms of us squeezing the front part of the week and not the back part of the week. So, there will be no excuses in terms of how we perform on Saturday."
