Three QBs to play Thursday vs. Eagles
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Coach Mike Tomlin said all three quarterbacks other than Ben Roethlisberger will play in the preseason opener Thursday night in Philadelphia against the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles.
Tomlin said he hasn’t decided on a rotation or how much each of the quarterbacks — Landry Jones, Joshua Dobbs and rookie Mason Rudolph — will play, though it is expected Jones will start against the Eagles.
“That is our intention, but again I’ve said that before and game circumstances play out a little differently,” Tomlin said Tuesday at a news conference at Saint Vincent College.
Nonetheless, the game will mark the debut of Rudolph, the team’s thirdround draft choice who set a myriad passing records at Oklahoma State.
“Mason has done a really good job, but he hasn’t been hit,” Tomlin said. “There will be attempts to hit him on Thursday night, so stay tuned, man.”
Tomlin also said injured players who have been held out of practice at training camp also will not play, including outside linebackers T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree and tight end Vance McDonald. All-Pro receiver Antonio Brown, who has not practiced since Wednesday, also will not play but, like Roethlisberger, he is customarily held out of the first two preseason games anyway.
“We’d like to leave the light on as long for as many people as possible who maybe missed practice, even on Sunday,” Tomlin said. “We realize the gravity of this opportunity in stadiums. You only get four of those opportunities to state a case for yourself. We realize what they do in stadiums is weighted differently than what happens out here [at training camp]. That’s the nature of this evaluation process.”
Brown returns
Antonio Brown was back on campus and joined his teammates on the field Tuesday and took part in some light drills and rehab.
Brown, who was in Miami getting water therapy treatment for what was reported as a hip flexor/ quad injury, did not stop for an interview request when he came off the field in the morning.
His treatment was reported via video on the Instagram account of Dr. Mike Wasilisin, who was treating Brown.
Tomlin said he is hoping to have Brown back on the practice field when the Steelers return to training camp after Thursday night’s preseason game in Philadelphia.
“He’s getting closer to return,” Tomlin said on Tuesday. “We look forward to getting him out there when we get back from Philadelphia.”
Rookies to get action
The Steelers are eager to further evaluate some of the players who have stood out in training camp, among them rookie draft picks safety Terrell Edmunds, wide receiver James Washington, tackle Chukwuma Okorafor and running back Jaylen Samuels. “We’re interested in seeing a lot of young guys,” Tomlin said. “We haven’t solidified any player or no player or the number of reps.”