Pittsburgh has a lot of bridges.

And there were a lot of Steelers' fans in danger of hurling themselves off one of them when the news of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's season-ending elbow injury hit.

Not a lot of faith in Mason Rudolph, it seems.

Even less for the other 52 dudes on the roster.

The panic spread rapidly. Predictions of 2-14 swirled. Dire diagnoses that Big Ben's career was over, that is arm was now filled with pinball machine parts, that he'd never be the same again consumed social media.

While it's still too early to tell when Roethlisberger will be back pump-faking and launching arching passes down the sideline for James Washington to catch (and promptly run out of bounds), he will be back.

Count on it. (Well, maybe not — more on that later).

The recovery time from an injury like his is unpredictable.

He could be back shedding sacks by the season-opener in 2020 or he could be out until midseason.

It's Rudolph's job now and he acquitted himself well in the time he played against Seattle Sunday.

The question now is will Rudolph be the next Ben Roethlisberger or the next Cliff Stoudt?

Big Ben famously took over for an injured Tommy Maddox after an elbow injury in Week 2 (sound familiar?) and won 13 straight regular-season starts in 2004.

Maddox started the season finale against the Bills that year, also a win.

On the other side of the coin, Cliff Stoudt took over for another Steelers' quarterbacking legend who suffered an elbow injury (sound familiar?) in 1983 and had Pittsburgh sitting at 9-2 before, well, his Cliff Stoudt-ness was too much for the rest of the team to overcome.

Bradshaw played two quarters that season and lit up the Jets before re-injuring his elbow on his final pass, a touchdown to Calvin Sweeney.

Stoudt ended up one of the most vilified players by fans in team history.

Rudolph does not want to become another Cliff Stoudt.

He likely won't be. He likely won't be another Big Ben, either.

More likely, he'll be somewhere in the middle — perhaps another Tommy Maddox. That wouldn't be so bad.

Would it?

But what if he is dreadful. What if the Steelers start 1-4 and it is clear Rudolph is not the answer in the short term?

With the trade for Minkah Fitzpatrick, the Steelers' defense should be much better.

A quarterback may be the one missing piece.

What then?

Here's a thought.

Just hear me out. It sounds preposterous on the surface, but, man, would it be cool.

The New York football Giants have already shipped Eli Manning to the island of misfit old quarterbacks.

What if the Steelers swung a trade for Manning after realizing Rudolph was not the answer and believing the season could still be salvaged?

What if Manning, rejuvenated by the change in scenery and excited by the plethora of weapons around him, finds the Kurt Warner, circa 2008, fountain of youth and leads the Steelers to the playoffs.

What if he gets them to the AFC championship game — against the Patriots?

What if he beats New England (because, Eli)?

What if he helps the Steelers win the Super Bowl?

Manning would certainly retire, etching his legacy.

Would Roethlisberger call it quits, then, too — especially if his elbow isn't responding?

Then you could have Manning and Roethlisberger, two quarterbacks tied together by the 2004 draft, retiring at the same time with a Super Bowl rings.

And enshrined in Canton together five years later?

Crazier things have happened.

Mike Kilroy is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.