{"id":901553,"date":"2026-05-26T07:54:26","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T07:54:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/901553\/"},"modified":"2026-05-26T07:54:26","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T07:54:26","slug":"steelers-must-call-these-2-teams-about-trading-mason-rudolph-right-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/901553\/","title":{"rendered":"Steelers Must Call These 2 Teams About Trading Mason Rudolph Right Now"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s been a ton of discussion about the Pittsburgh Steelers<\/a> quarterback room heading into the 2026 NFL season<\/a>. Pittsburgh finally knows who their starter is going to be now that Aaron Rodgers<\/a> has made it clear he will be playing for the Black and Gold. When he signed on for the 2025 season, Rodgers intended to play just one year. Then the Steelers hired Mike McCarthy<\/a> to become their fourth head coach since 1969, and Rodgers suddenly had something to think about. Rodgers is back for 2026, but this will be his final season, as he said himself: ‘This is it.’<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Steelers<\/p>\n

Jordan Schofield \/ SteelerNation (X: @JSKO_PHOTO)<\/p>\n

Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks down at his play sheet while he watches practice in street clothes as the team works out during 2025 training camp at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA.<\/p>\n

With that being said, the Steelers still have veteran backup Mason Rudolph along with young options Will Howard and Drew Allar. Many believe Rudolph could be trade bait, while others think he\u2019s too important to move because of Rodgers\u2019 age and durability concerns. Having a trusted veteran backup during an all-in season is a necessity. However, would it make more sense for Pittsburgh to try and get something in return for Rudolph now while also beginning to prepare Howard or Allar for the backup role? That\u2019s the current debate among Steeler Nation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With teams across the NFL constantly trying to shore up their quarterback rooms and depth charts, the position is always a highly sought-after commodity. In this case, Pittsburgh has a semi-reliable backup option who could pique the interest of multiple teams. Here are the two teams Steelers General Manager Omar Khan<\/a> absolutely must call now to try and trade Rudolph.<\/p>\n

1) Indianapolis Colts<\/p>\n

The Steelers already got a solid deal done with the Indianapolis Colts during the 2026 offseason when they pulled off a trade for wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr.\u00a0Now, Pittsburgh should pick up the phone once again and see if the Colts would have interest in trading for Rudolph. With uncertainty surrounding Daniel Jones, Anthony Richardson, and Riley Leonard, many would argue Rudolph would immediately become the most reliable backup option behind Jones.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Steelers<\/p>\n

Jordan Schofield \/ SteelerNation (X: @JSKO_PHOTO)<\/p>\n

Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph (2) during 2025 training camp in Latrobe, PA.<\/p>\n

While Jones is expected to be ready for the start of the 2026 season, his injury history remains a concern. Having Rudolph behind him would give Indianapolis far more stability than relying on Richardson, who has dealt with injuries of his own, or an inexperienced Leonard. During the 2025 season, the Colts clearly could have used someone like Rudolph after eventually having to sign Philip Rivers. This feels like a move that would make plenty of sense for both sides.<\/p>\n

2) Miami Dolphins<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no secret the Miami Dolphins<\/a> heavily invested in Malik Willis, but that experiment could quickly go sideways. Quinn Ewers is currently the backup behind him, and that is not a ton of experience for a quarterback room trying to compete. That\u2019s where Rudolph would make a lot of sense. The Steelers and Dolphins have a history of doing business together, and this feels like another situation where a deal could benefit both sides.<\/p>\n

Miami\u2019s quarterback room badly needs a veteran presence for a variety of reasons. Whether it\u2019s providing insurance if Willis struggles or helping mentor both Willis and Ewers, Rudolph could play an important role there immediately. That\u2019s exactly why Khan should give the Dolphins a call as well.<\/p>\n

Steelers May Keep Mason Rudolph In 2026<\/p>\n

While there has been plenty of debate about trading Rudolph, there are just as many reasons for the Steelers to keep him for the 2026 season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Steelers<\/p>\n

Benjamin B. Braun \/ Post-Gazette<\/p>\n

Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph celebrates after win vs rival Baltimore Ravens<\/p>\n

Rudolph gives Pittsburgh a proven veteran backup behind Rodgers, who will be entering what is expected to be his final NFL season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Please feel free to share your Steelers takes and thoughts with me on X (@anthonyghalkias<\/a>) and consider following for more Steelers-related content and discussion. I\u2019m always open to hearing different perspectives, breaking down games, and talking all things Pittsburgh football.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There\u2019s been a ton of discussion about the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback room heading into the 2026 NFL season.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":901554,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2059],"tags":[1586,2005,1800,198,7,2394,2004,392,2381,560,11808,7866,6,57,426,2395,2183],"class_list":["post-901553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-indianapolis-colts","tag-aaron-rodgers","tag-colts","tag-drew-allar","tag-featured","tag-football","tag-forum","tag-indianapolis","tag-indianapolis-colts","tag-indianapoliscolts","tag-mason-rudolph","tag-michael-pittman-jr","tag-mike-mccarthy","tag-nfl","tag-pittsburgh-steelers","tag-steelers","tag-steelers-news","tag-will-howard"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116639803990280292","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/901553","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=901553"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/901553\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/901554"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=901553"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=901553"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=901553"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}