Colbert Confirms Steelers Had 1st-Round Grade On Mason Rudolph

[Shoes]

A first round player for a third round pick? When you frame it like that, it’s easy to understand why the Pittsburgh Steelers took the chance on Mason Rudolph. Although Kevin Colbert has hinted at it since Rudolph became the 76th pick of the 2018 NFL Draft, yesterday was the first time – that I’m aware of, at least – Colbert explicitly said the Steelers had a first round grade on him.

http://www.steelersdepot.com/2018/05...mason-rudolph/

[hawaiiansteeler]

very nice and all.

but how does that help us win now?

[DesertSteel]

very nice and all.

but how does that help us win now?

Ben gets injured in week 2. Rudolph comes in and lights it up for 4 games and when Ben gets healthy, they keep him on the bench. Rudolph leads them to #7 and is named league MVP.

Crazy, but it's happened before. Brady/Bledsoe, Warner/Green and minus the Super Bowl, Dak/Romo.

Chance of happening: 1% but I'd love to see it.

[GBMelBlount]

Everybody acts like the worse case for Ben is he will be out for 3 or 4 games.

The reality is his leg could snap like a twig on any given day and he could be gone for the season.

Or, he could get a chronic hangnail.

[Shoes]

http://www.steelers.com/news/article...2-d179b0fb9560

[DesertSteel]

Everybody acts like the worse case for Ben is he will be out for 3 or 4 games.

The reality is his leg could snap like a twig on any given day and he could be gone for the season.

Or, he could get a chronic hangnail.

Whichever one it is, Cowher will contradict Ben's report!

[ThorndikeFFA]

"Ben has a nail."

[BlackAndGold]

is it July/August yet?

[Hawkman]

Ben gets injured in week 2. Rudolph comes in and lights it up for 4 games and when Ben gets healthy, they keep him on the bench. Rudolph leads them to #7 and is named league MVP.

Crazy, but it's happened before. Brady/Bledsoe, Warner/Green and minus the Super Bowl, Dak/Romo.

Chance of happening: 1% but I'd love to see it.

.......and you’re assuming that Rudolph will be the #2 QB.

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is it July/August yet?

Sadly.....NO

[DesertSteel]

.......and you’re assuming that Rudolph will be the #2 QB.

No, Jones gets injured in a scuba diving accident.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Yeah, but they also had a 1st round grade on Jarvis Jones, didn't they?

[hawaiiansteeler]

Yeah, but they also had a 1st round grade on Jarvis Jones, didn't they?

too bad we didn't draft Jarvis Jones in the third round...

[fansince'76]

Yeah, but they also had a 1st round grade on Jarvis Jones, didn't they?

I'm not a draftnik by any stretch, but if memory serves, didn't pretty much everyone else at the time as well? I certainly don't recall "huge reach" being part of the description when he was picked, anyway.

[pczach]

No, Jones gets injured in a scuba diving accident.

You mean he gets hurt diving for one of his flannel shirts that got stuck at the bottom of his washing machine?

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I'm not a draftnik by any stretch, but if memory serves, didn't pretty much everyone else at the time as well? I certainly don't recall "huge reach" being part of the description when he was picked, anyway.

Yes he did. Pretty much every famous draft analyst had him as a first round pick. Medical concerns had him dropping on many people's boards late, but nearly everyone had him as a 1st round pick.

There were some of us on the message boards that warned about taking him that high, but we just don't have that much pull within the organization.

[Dwinsgames]

I'm not a draftnik by any stretch, but if memory serves, didn't pretty much everyone else at the time as well? I certainly don't recall "huge reach" being part of the description when he was picked, anyway.

Yep ...

I am guilty myself ...

and he still may have worked out if he had been used more like he was in College , he was a free lancer moved around giving himself the best looks at getting to the ball pre snap ...

proved to not be physical enough in the NFL to beat tackles and the fact that he never developed a 2nd or 3rd move ( coaching failures ?? ) complete lack of athleticism ?? or not dedicated enough to his craft ?? or a combination of all of the above perhaps , we will never know and at this point likely not care enough to try and find out ..... but there are hints at all of it

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

I'm not a draftnik by any stretch, but if memory serves, didn't pretty much everyone else at the time as well? I certainly don't recall "huge reach" being part of the description when he was picked, anyway.

Gil Brandt wasn't buying as per below article:

An outlier of this bunch is NFL.com senior analyst Gil Brandt, who caused a Twitter stir on Tuesday with his latest assessment of the Georgia star.We decided to give Brandt a call because: a) we always enjoy hearing stories about the construction of the Dallas Cowboys in the "Mad Men" era; and b) we thought more insight was necessary on why Gil is so down on Jones' NFL chances.

"I just see him as a one-position player," Brandt told us Tuesday night by phone. "I see him as a guy that's going to play with his hand on the ground and he's going to try hard, and he's going to come close to making sacks, but he's not going to have 14.5 (sacks) like he did at Georgia."

After choosing to sit out workouts at the NFL Scouting Combine, Jones underwhelmed at Georgia's pro day.

Win a chance to announce a pick live at the 2013 NFL Draft. Enter now!

"I don't think he can play in space. I don't think he can be a 3-4 'backer that can drop into space and be effective," Brandt continued. "When you see him come from one side and try to chase down a play, he doesn't have that speed that you really need to have to play that position when he's chasing a guy.

"I think he's one of those guys that when you're rushing the passer, he's going to almost get there, but not quite."

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100...il-brandt-says

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Yep ...

I am guilty myself ...

and he still may have worked out if he had been used more like he was in College , he was a free lancer moved around giving himself the best looks at getting to the ball pre snap ...

proved to not be physical enough in the NFL to beat tackles and the fact that he never developed a 2nd or 3rd move ( coaching failures ?? ) complete lack of athleticism ?? or not dedicated enough to his craft ?? or a combination of all of the above perhaps , we will never know and at this point likely not care enough to try and find out ..... but there are hints at all of it

I thought his college tape looked a lot like Bruce Davis. He hustled hard to get his sacks, but it wasn't because of any great speed or pass rush moves. It was a combination of him always working and college QB's holding onto the ball too long.

My point is that relative to this discussion, fans can look to stats from PFF on Rudolph, but they are college stats that mean as much as the sack totals of Michael Sam or Jarvis Jones...or the QB stats of Jason White, Danny Weurffel or Brandon Weeden. On tape he makes some good throws, but sails quite a few too and his wilting in crunch time vs. Oklahoma and Kansas State shows that maybe the pressure of the moment is tougher for him than the pressure of the pass rush.

[DesertSteel]

I'm not expert but I hated the Jones pick from the start. If Steelers Fever was still up you'd find my many comments after the draft to that effect. I could not get past his 4.9 time. It mattered and it showed on the field. That time is the only reason that a lot of teams took him off their boards.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

I'm not expert but I hated the Jones pick from the start. If Steelers Fever was still up you'd find my many comments after the draft to that effect. I could not get past his 4.9 time. It mattered and it showed on the field. That time is the only reason that a lot of teams took him off their boards.

Yeah, I know that 4.9 showed a lot that he wouldn't do well in the NFL.

Still, Bucky Brooks kept raving about his first step and thought he was the best pass rusher in the draft that year.

[DesertSteel]

Yeah, I know that 4.9 showed a lot that he wouldn't do well in the NFL.

Still, Bucky Brooks kept raving about his first step and thought he was the best pass rusher in the draft that year.

Yeah and Bill Polian said that Landry Jones was the best QB in his draft class... lol

[GBMelBlount]

Yeah, I know that 4.9 showed a lot that he wouldn't do well in the NFL.

Still, Bucky Brooks kept raving about his first step and thought he was the best pass rusher in the draft that year.

It is funny how people (like me) just emphasize what THEY want, regardless of the bigger picture.

So basically: "Sure his 40 is slow but his first half-step is A-MA-ZING!"

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

It is funny how people (like me) just emphasize what THEY want, regardless of the bigger picture.

So basically: "Sure his 40 is slow but his first half-step is A-MA-ZING!"

True dat.

Just like...Mason Rudolph is so good under pressure according to PFF. But if he is so good under pressure, then why could he not engineer a game winning drive vs Oklahoma when he was 1st and 10 on the Oklahoma 40 and down by 3 points??

[Shoes]

True dat.

Just like...Mason Rudolph is so good under pressure according to PFF. But if he is so good under pressure, then why could he not engineer a game winning drive vs Oklahoma when he was 1st and 10 on the Oklahoma 40 and down by 3 points??

Ben as a pro has had his share of flops in the RZ

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Ben as a pro has had his share of flops in the RZ

OK, but was one of the knocks on Mason Rudolph that he overthrows WR's more than you would like to see? I believe it was and below is another instance of it.

With the game on the line though, the OSU offense wilted under the pressure. James Washington dropped what would have been a first down catch on the first play, and Rudolph followed that up with three straight overthrows to turn the ball over on downs. Kansas State was able to run out the clock with three plays, and they secured their eighth straight bowl appearance in one of the most entertaining finishes of the Big 12 season. Final score 45-40.

http://landgrantgauntlet.com/2017/11...klahoma-state/

My point is that just because "Steelers had a first round grade on Mason Rudolph" or "PFF says Mason Rudolph great under pressure", it doesn't mean that we should ignore the fact that it appears that when the game was on the line against conference opponents...TWICE this season he failed to perform well in the clutch. I think concerns about his intermediate accuracy and overthrowing receivers are valid.

[Shoes]

OK, but was one of the knocks on Mason Rudolph that he overthrows WR's more than you would like to see? I believe it was and below is another instance of it.

With the game on the line though, the OSU offense wilted under the pressure. James Washington dropped what would have been a first down catch on the first play, and Rudolph followed that up with three straight overthrows to turn the ball over on downs. Kansas State was able to run out the clock with three plays, and they secured their eighth straight bowl appearance in one of the most entertaining finishes of the Big 12 season. Final score 45-40.

http://landgrantgauntlet.com/2017/11...klahoma-state/

My point is that just because "Steelers had a first round grade on Mason Rudolph" or "PFF says Mason Rudolph great under pressure", it doesn't mean that we should ignore the fact that it appears that when the game was on the line against conference opponents...TWICE this season he failed to perform well in the clutch. I think concerns about his intermediate accuracy and overthrowing receivers are valid.

point taken, but Mason has a lot more going for him than Landry Jones. This kid isn't going to be happy holding a clipboard. Besides all that he was just fitted for a helmet this week.

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[BlackAndGold]

Yeah and Bill Polian said that Landry Jones was the best QB in his draft class... lol

He was right about that lol. The 2013 QB class was bad.

[Dwinsgames]

True dat.

Just like...Mason Rudolph is so good under pressure according to PFF. But if he is so good under pressure, then why could he not engineer a game winning drive vs Oklahoma when he was 1st and 10 on the Oklahoma 40 and down by 3 points??

some things will never be explained ....

how does Ben throw 5 picks vs the Jags in the first meeting last year ? fails to learn from in and throws a few more to them in the playoff loss ?

how is it we score 42 points of offense in a playoff loss and its the OC that gets the pink slip and not the DC that unit gives up 45 ?

some things we will never know

[hawaiiansteeler]

With the game on the line though, the OSU offense wilted under the pressure. James Washington dropped what would have been a first down catch on the first play

can't really blame Rudolph for that, if Washington makes that catch they're already within FG range...

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

point taken, but Mason has a lot more going for him than Landry Jones. This kid isn't going to be happy holding a clipboard. Besides all that he was just fitted for a helmet this week.

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I think we know that Landry Jones is just a backup and not a long term starter in the NFL. I really don't think we know what Mason Rudolph is yet though, but I like what he says from an attitude and work ethic standpoint. I think he has potential if he can be more consistent in his delivery, but IMO its tough to grade a guy really high that overthrows a lot of WR's on intermediate routes.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

can't really blame Rudolph for that, if Washington makes that catch they're already within FG range...

Not really. The ball would be on the 43 if he catches it.
https://gfycat.com/gifs/detail/innocentreliableharpseal

But then he goes back to the well and overthrows the same route
https://gfycat.com/gifs/detail/giftedanimatedbobolink

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Then he overthrows Ateman to end it. BTW, this was K State...the Oklahoma choke was another game.
https://gfycat.com/gifs/detail/excellentajarferret