Rudolph, amid QB noise: 'Good to be wanted'

PITTSBURGH -- Everything astir being backmost astatine the Pittsburgh Steelers' UPMC Rooney Sports Complex is acquainted to Mason Rudolph. The caput coach, galore of his teammates. the media and the uniforms are each the same.

Even the sound surrounding him -- and not conscionable the rumble of the trains passing by the signifier fields -- is thing the backmost has grown utilized to implicit 5 roller-coaster NFL seasons.

"That's thing caller to me," Rudolph said Tuesday erstwhile asked astir the Aaron Rodgers-sized elephant successful the backmost room. "There's been changeless sound that is the quality of the NFL, truthful I person been utilized to that for a agelong clip now. I bash thing but beryllium the champion I tin beryllium and assistance our squad get amended this spring."

After a play successful Tennessee, the 2018 third-round draught prime returned to the Steelers connected a two-year, $7.5 cardinal deal inked successful the archetypal week of escaped agency. The Steelers signed Rudolph amid their pursuit of Rodgers, and they proceed to hold connected the four-time MVP to marque a determination astir his future.

"It's great," Rudolph said of the Steelers acting rapidly successful escaped bureau to motion him. "I've been a portion [of teams] wherever you leap connected the moving bid precocious successful the spring, and past [others where] you're present from the jump. So I've learned to accommodate to both, but it's evidently bully to beryllium wanted."

Rudolph filled the relation of QB1 connected Tuesday, starring disconnected the backmost drills for a radical that besides includes 2025 sixth-round prime Will Howard and erstwhile Miami Dolphins backmost Skylar Thompson.

"He's ever been accordant of who helium is," choky extremity Pat Freiermuth said of Rudolph. "Obviously helium has a hellhole of an accidental close now, and truthful we're each excited for him. He's going to travel to enactment each azygous time and enactment hard, truthful it is been large to spot him enactment again."

For Rudolph, the extremity of the adjacent 3 weeks is to larn the basics of Arthur Smith's discourtesy -- a strategy that's a departure from the past clip helium was successful Pittsburgh and played coordinators Randy Fichtner, Matt Canada and interim OCs/playcallers Eddie Faulkner and Mike Sullivan.

When Rudolph past suited up for the Steelers successful 2023, helium helped pb a late-season surge that resulted successful 3 consecutive wins and a playoff berth.

"We won games down the agelong determination and astatine an important time," Rudolph said. "I conscionable deliberation we played complimentary football, and the much clip spent successful the NFL, you larn that it takes complimentary football, peculiar teams, offense, defense. [Mike Tomlin] enactment the statistic up today, I deliberation we were similar the past 2 years, apical 2 oregon 2 and 3 successful turnover borderline here. So that comes from the civilization that Mike T's created with shot hunt and shot security. That's thing we're each moving towards."

To Freiermuth, Rudolph's quality to elevate the squad precocious successful the 2023 play is among the reasons he's excited to person the backmost successful the fold.

"I emotion Mason," Freiermuth said. "He's a hellhole of a guy, hellhole of a teammate, large locker country guy. And I mean, 2 years agone we needed to triumph 3 games successful a enactment to marque it to the playoffs, and helium stood successful the pouch and delivered for us. So we got each the religion successful him and it's breathtaking to get backmost present with him."

And though caller wide receiver DK Metcalf wasn't contiguous Tuesday, Rudolph said helium connected with him during the archetypal 2 phases of the offseason programme erstwhile Metcalf was astir "probably fractional the time."

"He's an unbelievable athlete." Rudolph said. "I deliberation we each benignant of knew that from watching the portion and watching him from crossed the league. But his wanting to larn and his questions -- and he's inquisitive and he's precise intelligent, precise articulate. I thought that was big-time. And helium conscionable seems similar a feline who's a low-ego guy. He's been paid a lot. He's been precise successful, but he's precise bare to improve."