Kevin Colbert: ‘We Applauded Devlin Hodges For What He Could Do Under The Circumstances’

[polamalubeast]

General manager Kevin Colbert also takes a similar approach to me in viewing Hodges in light of the circumstances into which he was thrown. The reality is he never should have been in the position he was in, but relatively speaking, things could have been worse.

“We applauded Devlin Hodges for what he could do under the circumstances”, he told his WDVE hosts last week. “And again, those guys provided the necessary help that you need from a backup position, when you look at that production versus what usually an NFL team will get out of a backup quarterback over a long run, not just a short-term, three- or four-game fill-in”.

“Those guys had to play 14 games”, he added, referring to both Hodges and Mason Rudolph, of course, “and collectively, they did a decent job, but they did a job that was encouraging as we move forward”. Which is why they passed on Jalen Hurts.

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https://steelersdepot.com/2020/05/ke...medium=twitter


Very rare we can see an undrafted rookie QB win 3 games and be .500 overall no matter the situation...Maybe he will not be in an NFL roster for the rest of his career, we don't know but at least for him he can say that he played in the NFL and he won 3 games, 2 against first overall picks and another against maybe a HOF QB in Rivers.

[st33lersguy]

I think both seem like they can be decent as backups, especially under the right circumstances. They seemed to do well when they entered to finish games off the bench and didn't play to bad initially. The only thing is they are not starters, they got worse the more they played, but then again, they are both young and neither had much help from their supporting cast, or their OC

[teegre]

There are three Twitter battles/feeds that are epic:

1. TJ Watt vs. JJ Watt
2. Zach Banner vs. Duck Hodges
3. AB vs. sanity

[polamalubeast]

Problem with Mason Rudolph is that he was not drafted to be just a backup...He need to be much better.

[teegre]

Look at Aaron Rodgers’ first few starts. The stats are eerily similar to those of Mason Rudolph.

I’m in no way saying Mason Rudolph is the next Aaron Rodgers. I’m just saying that Aaron Rodgers wasn’t “Aaron Rodgers” right out of the gate.

[polamalubeast]

Look at Aaron Rodgers’ first few starts. The stats are eerily similar to those of Mason Rudolph.

I’m in no way saying Mason Rudolph is the next Aaron Rodgers. I’m just saying that Aaron Rodgers wasn’t “Aaron Rodgers” right out of the gate.

I hope to be wrong but my biggest problem with Rudolph, even before his first regular season game is he is too conservative as QB ... He needs to be more aggressive but not too aggressive .... The balance for that is very important

QB who are too conservative have lower ceilings .... But I still expect him to be better in 2020 if he plays since he is going to be in a better situation with hopefully better coaching on offense. ..He had no QB coach in 2019 which did not help.

[teegre]

I hope to be wrong but my biggest problem with Rudolph, even before his first regular season game is he is too conservative as QB ... He needs to be more aggressive but not too aggressive .... The balance for that is very important

QB who are too conservative have lower ceilings .... But I still expect him to be better in 2020 if he plays since he is going to be in a better situation with hopefully better coaching on offense. ..He had no QB coach in 2019 which did not help.

Part of me wants to blame the OC (for calling short pass after short pass). But, there were numerous times when JuJu and/ Vance were wide open across the middle... but, Rudolph chose the “safer” throw.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Problem with Mason Rudolph is that he was not drafted to be just a backup...He need to be much better.

What exactly was he drafted to be? Please enlighten.

[polamalubeast]

What exactly was he drafted to be? Please enlighten.

A good starter at least(like top 15) ... I mean when a player is drafted in the first 3 rounds, it's not just to be a backup otherwise it's a wasted pick.

[43Hitman]

A good starter at least(like top 15) ... I mean when a player is drafted in the first 3 rounds, it's not just to be a backup otherwise it's a wasted pick.

Simply not true.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

A good starter at least(like top 15) ... I mean when a player is drafted in the first 3 rounds, it's not just to be a backup otherwise it's a wasted pick.

How many QB's are drafted in the first round that don't equate to being a top 15 QB in the NFL?

You expect 3rd round picks to definitely translate to being upper echelon QB's in the NFL?? I shouldn't have to point out how unrealistic of an expectation that is, but here it goes anyways...

The attached link shows a list of QB's selected in the NFL from 1990-2017 and deems success as being a "multi year starter for the NFL team that drafted them". It shows 25% of QB's taken in the 3rd round have started at least 2 seasons for that team, where they took the majority of snaps. The 2nd round QB's were 48% that had 2 seasons of being the teams starting QB https://www.milehighreport.com/2017/...d-quarterbacks Now this doesn't mean they ascended to being a "franchise QB". Charlie Batch was a 2nd round pick of the Lions and is considered successful, because he started at least 2 seasons for the Lions...but he is far from being considered top 15 in the NFL in any of those years, let along long term.

So the odds are that if you pick a QB in the NFL in the 3rd round, 75% of them will not be the starting QB for at least 2 seasons in the NFL. NFL coaches, executives, scouts and even fans get that. Drafting QB's is like having a lottery ticket. No guarantee that you will win and the later you pick the longer the odds of winning are...but you cant win if you don't have a ticket.

[tube517]

Look at Aaron Rodgers’ first few starts. The stats are eerily similar to those of Mason Rudolph.

I’m in no way saying Mason Rudolph is the next Aaron Rodgers. I’m just saying that Aaron Rodgers wasn’t “Aaron Rodgers” right out of the gate.

Mason = A-Rodgers = Ben's Eventual Replacement per Twitter!

Summation: It's Ben's fault

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Simply not true.

[polamalubeast]

How many QB's are drafted in the first round that don't equate to being a top 15 QB in the NFL?

You expect 3rd round picks to definitely translate to being upper echelon QB's in the NFL?? I shouldn't have to point out how unrealistic of an expectation that is, but here it goes anyways...

The attached link shows a list of QB's selected in the NFL from 1990-2017 and deems success as being a "multi year starter for the NFL team that drafted them". It shows 25% of QB's taken in the 3rd round have started at least 2 seasons for that team, where they took the majority of snaps. The 2nd round QB's were 48% that had 2 seasons of being the teams starting QB https://www.milehighreport.com/2017/...d-quarterbacks Now this doesn't mean they ascended to being a "franchise QB". Charlie Batch was a 2nd round pick of the Lions and is considered successful, because he started at least 2 seasons for the Lions...but he is far from being considered top 15 in the NFL in any of those years, let along long term.

So the odds are that if you pick a QB in the NFL in the 3rd round, 75% of them will not be the starting QB for at least 2 seasons in the NFL. NFL coaches, executives, scouts and even fans get that. Drafting QB's is like having a lottery ticket. No guarantee that you will win and the later you pick the longer the odds of winning are...but you cant win if you don't have a ticket.

Being the 15th best QB in the NFL is very average if you consider that the NFL have 32 starting QB.

And when you draft a player in the first 3 rounds, the goal is that this player becomes a good starter no matter the position .... True that the percentages for a QB is much lower in the 3rd round and this is for this reason why I hope that the steelers will draft a QB in the first round in 2021 or 2022(or when Ben will be done for good), since normally his QB have a bigger ceiling, which is very important in this league ... This is not a guarantee but the odds are much better.

[EzraTank]

Hodges gets a pass, he clearly is what he was expected to be. Rudolph could have been way better but clearly wasn't. Moving forward I don't think either one of them belong in the NFL as a starter or backup. Maybe an emergency 3rd QB if a team wants to carry one but not any higher.

With all that said it didn't help either guy that we had just lost our best RB and WR in the past two years. We went from Bell to China doll Conner and AB to Juju and a bunch of unknowns. It was pretty easy to game plan for our offense once Ben went down.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Being the 15th best QB in the NFL is very average if you consider that the NFL have 32 starting QB.

And when you draft a player in the first 3 rounds, the goal is that this player becomes a good starter no matter the position .... True that the percentages for a QB is much lower in the 3rd round and this is for this reason why I hope that the steelers will draft a QB in the first round in 2021 or 2022(or when Ben will be done for good), since normally his QB have a bigger ceiling, which is very important in this league ... This is not a guarantee but the odds are much better.

Wrong. Being one of the top 15 QB in the world is not average.

In the past 3 seasons, there have been 15 QB's taken in the first 3 rounds. Of them, 10 are current starters.
-Mahomes
-Watson
-Trubisky
-Darnold
-Mayfield
-Jackson
-Allen
-Lock
-Murray
-Jones

Of them there are 3 that listed in the top 15 of QBR last season
-Jackson 1
-Mahomes 2
-Murray 15

So 20% of the QB drafted in the first 3 rounds are in the top 15. You cant have 15 QB drafted in the top 3 rounds be top 15 QB's, because that means they supplant all others on the list. Drafting QB's is educated guessing where the chances of getting it wrong are much greater than getting it right.

[Six Rings]

I read the Steelers had a FIRST ROUND GRADE on Rudolph.

https://steelersdepot.com/2018/05/co...mason-rudolph/

Holy $#^T. A guy with a weak arm, small hands, limited mobility, and a player who did it in the defensively poor BIG 12 earned a first round grade? Yep. The Steelers simply can not scout quarterbacks. Although they took him in the third round, they thought he was better than he was, and quickly pulled the hook on him in favor of Duck.

[polamalubeast]

Wrong. Being one of the top 15 QB in the world is not average.

In the past 3 seasons, there have been 15 QB's taken in the first 3 rounds. Of them, 10 are current starters.
-Mahomes
-Watson
-Trubisky
-Darnold
-Mayfield
-Jackson
-Allen
-Lock
-Murray
-Jones

Of them there are 3 that listed in the top 15 of QBR last season
-Jackson 1
-Mahomes 2
-Murray 15

So 20% of the QB drafted in the first 3 rounds are in the top 15. You cant have 15 QB drafted in the top 3 rounds be top 15 QB's, because that means they supplant all others on the list. Drafting QB's is educated guessing where the chances of getting it wrong are much greater than getting it right.

A average QB for me is like Andy Dalton or Alex Smith in their prime .... They are QB you can win several regular seasons game with them but it's not QB that will allow their team to take the next step which is the championship level..Its QB will still have good stats because of their supporting cast ... Less good than that,this is below average for a starter for me.

For the QBR stats, I don't think it's a good stats ... In fact we can't judge a QB on only one stats but Trubisky was in the top 5 in 2018 even if he was very inaccurate like crazy in many games and I can't believe that Watson is not in the top 15 .... He was close to being a top 5 QB in 2019, same for 2018 after a slow start…

It is true that it is hard to find a QB with a high ceiling in the NFL but it is far from impossible .... The transition can be fast but it can also take 20 years like the steelers before Ben or 70 years and counting like the bears right now!!!

But it's not as if we are hopeless since we have seen a lot of QB in this decade who have won a lot of game in their rookie contrat and for many their play was also very good ...So it's possible to find one,just need to find the right one which is easier said than done but it is possible and the odds are better in the first round even if a trade up might be necessary

[Six Rings]

A average QB for me is like Andy Dalton or Alex Smith in their prime .... They are QB you can win several regular seasons game with them but it's not QB that will allow their team to take the next step which is the championship level..Its QB will still have good stats because of their supporting cast ... Less good than that,this is below average for a starter for me.

For the QBR stats, I don't think it's a good stats ... In fact we can't judge a QB on only one stats but Trubisky was in the top 5 in 2018 even if he was very inaccurate like crazy in many games and I can't believe that Watson is not in the top 15 .... He was close to being a top 5 QB in 2019, same for 2018 after a slow start…

It is true that it is hard to find a QB with a high ceiling in the NFL but it is far from impossible .... The transition can be fast but it can also take 20 years like the steelers before Ben or 70 years and counting like the bears right now!!!

But it's not as if we are hopeless since we have seen a lot of QB in this decade who have won a lot of game in their rookie contrat and for many their play was also very good ...So it's possible to find one,just need to find the right one which is easier said than done but it is possible and the odds are better in the first round even if a trade up might be necessary

Alex Smith is a better than average starting QB. Maybe not a super bowl QB, but good enough to reach the playoffs with.

I continue to hope the NFL will have a lottery system some day,

[polamalubeast]

Alex Smith is a better than average starting QB. Maybe not a super bowl QB, but good enough to reach the playoffs with.

I continue to hope the NFL will have a lottery system some day,

Maybe my standards for a QB is way too high, but at the same time I don't like a QB that costs too much money after his rookie contract and that this QB is not able to carry a team against good competition when the team needed the most...The steelers had this problem with that in the 1990s with Neil O'Donnell but at least they did not give the contract that the jets had offered.

[bendsteel]

My 2 cents? I think that the QB position is the ONE position where circumstances(coaches, team, owners etc.) means EVERYTHING. Mahommes is awesome and all, but how would he fare on another team last year? Flacco has a ring for gods sake! Would Mayfield be killin it in KC? Would LaMar Jackson thrive in the NFC North? I guess my point is that any NFL QB (#1 or #2) could thrive in just the right situation. That makes it harder to judge the quality of the player. It also shows the genius(or lack thereof) of a great coaching staff. There are teams that would be better off with Duck than what they have as a BU. That said, I would rather us take the winner of Barret and Lynch for #3.

[teegre]

I read the Steelers had a FIRST ROUND GRADE on Rudolph.

https://steelersdepot.com/2018/05/co...mason-rudolph/

Holy $#^T. A guy with a weak arm, small hands, limited mobility, and a player who did it in the defensively poor BIG 12 earned a first round grade? Yep. The Steelers simply can not scout quarterbacks. Although they took him in the third round, they thought he was better than he was, and quickly pulled the hook on him in favor of Duck.

(see: bolded part)

I once told a girl that she was the most beautiful girl I’d seen in a while. That worked out much better than the time that I told another girl she was “Iiight”.

[El-Gonzo Jackson]

Hodges is a competitor, that is undersized and doesnt have a strong arm, but can be accurate and throws a catchable football when he gets his feet set. I think his ceiling is a decent backup like Bruce Gradkowski, although I think Gradkowski has a stronger arm, while Hodges is a better runner. When they get thru a camp and some preseason games, I think Paxton Lynch has a better chance of making the team.

Rudolph has the size, reasonably good arm strength, work ethic, football IQ to be a good QB in the NFL. His foot mechanics are inconsistent and cause him to throw off platform, not using the lower half of his body and that causes him to use just arm and sometimes sail footballs high, or throw passes with poor velocity. He isnt the mobile athlete in the pocket or out, but slides and used to keep his eyes downfield while sliding to avoid rush.

I think as he got hit, Rudolph started looking at the rush more than the patterns, went back to not moving his feet towards his intended target and made bad throws late. If Matt Canada can improve his footwork thru his progressions, I think he can be good. If not, then I think he wont make it to his 2nd contract. I always thought Rudolph's ceiling could be Kirk Cousins type of player...good enough to win with, but not somebody that is gonna take control of a game like the greats.

[Mojouw]

(see: bolded part)

I once told a girl that she was the most beautiful girl I’d seen in a while. That worked out much better than the time that I told another girl she was “Iiight”.

Again, the inability of folks to realize that the statements that teams put out into the public are stage managed theater.

[polamalubeast]

My 2 cents? I think that the QB position is the ONE position where circumstances(coaches, team, owners etc.) means EVERYTHING. Mahommes is awesome and all, but how would he fare on another team last year? Flacco has a ring for gods sake! Would Mayfield be killin it in KC? Would LaMar Jackson thrive in the NFC North? I guess my point is that any NFL QB (#1 or #2) could thrive in just the right situation. That makes it harder to judge the quality of the player. It also shows the genius(or lack thereof) of a great coaching staff. There are teams that would be better off with Duck than what they have as a BU. That said, I would rather us take the winner of Barret and Lynch for #3.

Of course being in a good situation is important and it is important that his QB play by his strengths especially in the case of Lamar Jackson and I give John Harbaugh a lot of credit on that

But in the case of Mayfield, his problem last year was that he was way too much immature and in the NFL it can't happen ... I was not surprised by his awful season in 2019 and the fact that he is a one read QB has not helped.Todd Haley was fired in 2018 because Mayfield was not progressing too.... We will see this year if he will rebound otherwise he is a bust

[Born2Steel]

Question.....how much, if any difference do we think Josh Dobbs could have made over Duck or Rudolph with this offense last season? Even though Dobbs was not leading the team to the promised land, he was a threat to air it out. In fact that was his best ball. But with all the injuries to the OL, RBs, and WRs, I don't know that anyone could have won a playoff game. But I bet Dobbs would have at least gotten Garrett's helmet off first.

[polamalubeast]

Question.....how much, if any difference do we think Josh Dobbs could have made over Duck or Rudolph with this offense last season? Even though Dobbs was not leading the team to the promised land, he was a threat to air it out. In fact that was his best ball. But with all the injuries to the OL, RBs, and WRs, I don't know that anyone could have won a playoff game. But I bet Dobbs would have at least gotten Garrett's helmet off first.

One of the problems with Dobbs was that it was bad to make routine throw in 3rd down and 5 or something like that which is very important for a QB in the NFL.

Capable of making big play with his legs on occasion but his problem with his precision is a major problem .... I still think that Mason is a better QB than Dobbs.

[Mojouw]

With the rotating dumpster fire that also played QB for the Jags last year and Dobbs didn't play a single snap...that might be a signal that he kinda sucks.

[fansince'76]

Again, the inability of folks to realize that the statements that teams put out into the public are stage managed theater.

Exactly. If they really did have a first round grade on him, they would have taken him in the first round. Especially in light of Roethlisberger's retirement talk at the time.

[polamalubeast]

Exactly. If they really did have a first round grade on him, they would have taken him in the first round. Especially in light of Roethlisberger's retirement talk at the time.

They even draft James Washington before Mason!