Tomlin pleased with QB efforts
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin liked what he saw from his three backup quarterbacks during the Hall of Fame game on Thursday.
Starter Ben Roethlisberger had the night off, giving way to Mason Rudolph, who has been entrenched as the team’s backup for the past three seasons. Dwayne Haskins, Washington’s 2019 first-round pick, made his debut with Pittsburgh, while Josh Dobbs played most of the fourth quarter.
All three had their moments during the Steelers’ win against the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday.
“Largely, I thought all of their performances were positive,” Tomlin said. “That’s why we were excited about participating in this game. We’re going to particularly use that as an added opportunity to gain some exposure to these quarterbacks.”
Rudolph finished 6 of 9 for 84 yards, while Haskins played most of the game. Haskins ended 8 of 13 for 54 yards and he led the Steelers to a pair of scoring drives, while Dobbs went 4 of 6 for 37 yards and threw a touchdown.
Rudolph connected with Chase Claypool for a 45-yard diving catch on third-and-5 during a second-quarter drive that resulted in a missed field goal. But Rudolph and Claypool weren’t on the same page during a fumble that stalled the Steelers’ first drive of the game.
“We’ve got to finish drives, we’ve got to put more points on the board, but I thought the overall quality of the work was where we want it to be,” Rudolph said. “I thought outside of a couple plays – obviously the botched handoff there on the sweep – the guys made plays.”
Haskins said he wants to push Rudolph for the backup spot behind Roethlisberger.
“I’ve been told certain things, and that’s between me and the coaches,” Haskins said.
