Like many of you, I cannot believe this is a real thought I am having, but here we are.

This was actually something I had first thought about during the short week before the Thursday night game against the Tennessee Titans. With Pickett’s status in doubt, and Mitch Trubisky coming off of a very uninspiring second half performance against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

To be completely honest, I thought I was the only one with that idea, and was shocked to find that some other writers in this area had at least thought about the same thing.

Ultimately, I didn’t publish it at the time. Pickett came back for Thursday, and with the Steelers still winning games, it didn’t make any sense to even put the thought out there, despite Pickett’s poor performances on the field.

But this week, things are different.

The Steelers’ formula for winning games was exposed by one of the league’s top dogs (pun absolutely intended) in Cleveland.

Playing a style that consists of low event plays on offense, running the ball, and waiting for a splash play on defense works against teams like the Titans and Green Bay Packers, the “mid” teams if you will. But it is not sustainable; at some point, you are going to need your QB to make big plays to keep your team alive.

And Kenny Pickett couldn’t do it.

After one of Pickett’s worst game as a Pittsburgh Steeler, the vibes have never been lower as the team suffered a humiliating loss to the Browns.

Make no mistake, the Browns are a good team, and they have the most dominant defense in the NFL (both statistically, and with the eye test), but Cleveland was more of a spectator as the Steelers offense imploded yet again, only this time they finally paid the price for it.

Pickett went 15/28 for an abysmal 106 yards. It was another week of consistently poor play, as the first round pick from a year ago missed open receivers, spun into sacks, and threw the ball ten yards clear of anyone multiple times in this game.

Pickett and the offense were unable to get either of their big wide receiver targets actively involved in the game. Diontae Johnson had 2 catches for 16 yards (although he suffered a drop or two) and George Pickens had 4 catches, but for only 38 yards.

The way this team has been winning games was not sustainable, and now that the luck finally ran out, Pickett’s performance looks that much worse without a win to prop him up.

It’s not that he isn’t trying. And it’s not that he has a bad attitude. However, what he is doing is just simply not good enough.

It’s demoralizing for fans, who have watched the exact same scenario play out for weeks. And now, the desires grow more and more for potential changes at the QB position.

And so, it leaves me to ponder if perhaps the Steelers should go completely crazy and give ol’ Mason Rudolph another shot.

I’m in no way suggesting that Rudolph is the bets quarterback option on the team (like former Steeler Chris Hoke believes), but if we’re really being honest with ourselves, can it get any worse if Rudolph starts a game?

If, and that’s such an enormous if, the Steelers were to make a change, it would almost definitely be Mitch Trubisky. But in limited looks this season, Trubisky has not impressed.

In that second half outing against Jacksonville, Trubisky struggled to move the Steelers any better than Pickett. His stats are incredibly misleading: 15/27 for 138 yards, but a ton of those completions came in check down passes in garbage time for the Steelers.

Here was the key stat: 2 interceptions. His second pick came in the final seconds, so you can throw that one out. But his fourth quarter interception killed any hope Pittsburgh had to climb back into that game.

Being safe with the football is crucial for the Steelers offense, and whether you love him or hate him, you cannot trust Mitch Trubisky to do that. His poor ability to read defenses combined with his risky decision making makes it hard for him to play Steelers/Matt Canada football”effectively.

Whether Mason Rudolph could do that is definitely an arguable question, but he has just one game in the Canada offense during his career. The vast majority of his limited NFL experience came in 2019, when Randy Fichtner still ran the offense.

In his only start under Canada, Rudolph played in that infamous 2021 tie between the Steelers and winless Detroit Lions.

In that game, Rudolph went 30/50 for 242 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception.

Just for reference, those 242 yards are higher than any yardage totals Pickett has put up this season. Sure, it’s a bit of a skewed stat, but it’s still highly relevant.

For a better understanding of his work, we have to go back to 2019, when he stepped in and, along with Duck Hodges, led a Roethlisberger-less Steelers team to an 8-8 season.

In 2019, Rudolph went 5-3 as the starter (playing in 10 total games), completing 62.2% of his passes. He threw 13 touchdowns to 9 interceptions, and amassed a total of 1,765 yards.

Meanwhile, Pickett has that same amount of touchdowns in his entire 23-game NFL career, with arguably more talent to his disposal.

Mason Rudolph is not good at that many things, but to his credit, he does throw a good deep ball. That would allow the Steelers to potentially get a player like Pickens or even Calvin Austin more involved in the game.

Rudolph also can be mobile at times. He won’t wow you with his rushing yards totals, but in comparison to Pickett, it’s basically a wash.

Part of the difference between the Ben Roethlisberger and Kenny Pickett eras for the Steelers was Kenny’s mobility. Pickett wasn’t scouted as a running QB, but anyone taking over for 39-year old Ben would be an upgrade in that department.

But we don’t often see Kenny actually use his legs in-game. If anything, it often ends up getting him into trouble. Pickett’s habit of spinning around in the pocket to try and escape or get a better look has wound up with him being sacked several times this season. It’s a big criticism of his game.

I don’t think Rudolph is a starting quarterback in the NFL, but in this certain circumstance, he might be the best bet. He’s a good system QB, he’s been with the offense since 2018, and he can carry out the “safe” gameplan Matt Canada loves so dearly.

In the end, this is all probably moot. Kenny Pickett will remain the starter for Pittsburgh. And even if they did make a change (they won’t), it would be to go to Mitch. It’s why they paid him the money they did, and even extended him two more years.

All I’m saying, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, is that if you want to get crazy, maybe we give Mason another look. It can’t be any worse.

(Featured photo by Don Wright/AP)