Rudolph answers call, tops Bengals

PITTSBURGH — Mason Rudolph acknowledges his mind would drift toward the future as the seasons passed and he remained at the bottom of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ depth chart.

“You have confidence in yourself as a player,” the backup quarterback said. “But I’m kinda thinking, ‘Am I going to jump into the commercial real estate realm next year or am I going to play quarterback?’ ”

A job change might have to wait. There might be life in Rudolph’sNFLcareer—and in the Steelers’ season.

Two-plus years after his last appearance in a regularseason game, Rudolph threw for 290 yards and two long touchdowns to embattled wide receiver George Pickens on Saturday as the Steelers gave their playoff hopes a jolt with a 34-11 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

With Kenny Pickett still recovering from right ankle surgery and with secondstringer Mitch Trubisky ineffective in two starts, Pittsburgh (8-7) turned to the third-longest-tenured player on the roster. Rudolph responded by making the kind of big plays that have been lacking in the NFL’s 28thranked offense for years as the Steelers ended a threegame skid.

He hit Pickens for an 86yard, catch-and-run touchdownonPittsburgh’ssecond offensive snap and lobbed a rainbow in the third quarter that Pickens turned into a 66-yard score as the Steelers posted their highest point total in a win since 2020.

“I felt like we were balanced and we were clicking,” said Rudolph, who completed 17 of 27 passes.

Pickens, at times criticized for lackadaisical play, caught four passes for 195 yards — including a 44-yard sideline grab just before halftime that set up a field goal — and afterward apologized, sort of, for saying during the week that his critics were “media guys” who never played the game. Yet he also said he was keeping “receipts” and called the negativity that’s engulfed the Steelers so much “outside noise.”

“People like to question [our commitment] a lot,” Pickens said. “But that just shows you [who we are].”

Cincinnati (8-7) fell to 3-2 with Jake Browning as a starterinplaceoftheinjured Joe Burrow. Browning threw for 335 yards and a touchdown but was also picked off three times, with all three turnovers leading to points.