The Pittsburgh Steelers dropped to 0-3 on Sunday following a tough road loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and afterward, second-year quarterback Mason Rudolph shouldered the blame for the defeat:
“We just came out slow,” Rudolph said, according to Kevin Gorman of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I’m more to blame than anyone.”
Rudolph completed 14 of his 27 passes for 174 yards, a couple of touchdowns and an interception, and while his so-so performance was enough to keep the Steelers in the game, it was not enough to get his team the win.
Pittsburgh's defense was able to force five turnovers, but the club was only able to generate six points off of them.
“We’ve got to get more out of it,” Rudolph said. “A lot of that falls on my shoulders, getting us in the end zone and converting on possession downs. … I told Cam (Heyward) that. That game’s on us. We had so many opportunities, with the turnovers in the first half and the momentum swing with the defense. We’ve got to put more points on the board for you guys.”
Of course, Rudolph was not expected to be thrust into this role at any point this season, as Ben Roethlisberger went down with a season-ending elbow injury and the Steelers traded backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs to the Jacksonville Jaguars, throwing Rudolph into the fire.
Rudolph, who played his collegiate football at Oklahoma State, was originally selected by Pittsburgh in the third round (76th pick overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.
He didn't play a single snap during his rookie campaign.
Follow Us
Subscribe