Who Should I Start? Mason Rudolph or Anthony Richardson

Wednesday, May 28, 11:59 AM

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph opened OTAs with the first-team offense on Tuesday, according to Brooke Pryor of ESPN. This news isn't much of a surprise, but it does confirm head coach Mike Tomlin's vision as full-team practices get underway this summer. Presumably, the starting quarterback job is Rudolph's to lose, barring an external quarterback addition such as Aaron Rodgers or Kirk Cousins. Rudolph's internal competition comes from Skylar Thompson and rookie Will Howard. Thompson has completed just 58.7 percent of his career passes with one touchdown, three interceptions, and two fumbles. He primarily served as a backup over three seasons in Miami. Meanwhile, Howard is a rookie who impressed at Ohio State, but he has suboptimal draft capital as a sixth-round pick. On the other hand, Rudolph has shown flashes of potential during his time with the Steelers (2018-2023) and Titans (2024). In Tennessee last year, he completed 64 percent of his passes for 1,530 yards, nine touchdowns, and nine interceptions.

Tuesday, June 10, 6:07 PM

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (shoulder) was shut down on May 29 after an "aggravation" to the AC joint in his surgically-repaired right shoulder and will be out indefinitely, according to head coach Shane Steichen. It's bad news for the former first-rounder after he suffered a severe AC joint sprain in October of 2023 in his rookie season that required season-ending surgery. The Athletic's James Boyd writes that the odds of Richardson one day becoming the face of the Colts franchise are dwindling by the day. "We'll see when he comes back. Not going to put a timetable for training camp on it, but when he does come back, we'll ease him into throwing, and we'll go from there," Steichen said. Although nothing will be decided this year, Richardson's stock is falling drastically, increasing Daniel Jones' odds of winning the starting gig under center.