The Pittsburgh Steelers struggled to get anything going on offense in the first half of their AFC North showdown with the Cincinnati Bengals. As as result, they made a change. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Steelers have benched quarterback Mason Rudolph for Devlin Hodges to start the second half:
Mason Rudolph benched by the Steelers. Devlin Hodges now the Steelers’ QB.
It has been a rough couple of weeks for Rudolph. He made headlines for his part in the scrum with Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett and has now been firmly replaced for his lackluster play.
Head coach Mike Tomlin's decision to bench Rudolph should hardly come as any surprise considering how he has performed since taking over for quarterback Ben Roethlisberger early in the 2019 NFL season. He has thrown for 12 touchdowns and eight interceptions while completing just 62.3 percent of his passes. His struggles carried over versus Cincinnati after completing 8-of-16 passes for 85yards and an interception before he was ultimately benched for Hodges.
Hodges did a solid job of filling in during the win over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6. He completed 15-of-20 passes for 132 yards and a touchdown while also throwing an interception. The onus will now fall on him to provide a much-needed spark on offense while the defense continues to play at a high level.
Fortunately, Hodges already appears to be off to a good start after needing just two passes to get the Steelers in the end zone.
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