WATCH: Mason Rudolph Weighs In On Future Of Steelers' QB Position

NFL: AUG 25 Preseason - Titans at Steelers

Photo: Icon Sportswire

Ben Roethlisberger is back for his 18th and presumably final NFL season with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After that, Mason Rudolph hopes to be the guy moving forward.

Rudolph, who's spent his first three seasons backing up Roethlisberger, as well as making sporadic starts in his absence, said his goal is to be a starting NFL quarterback and specifically for the Steelers moving forward.

"That's my goal, to be a starting quarterback in this league and for our team, and I'm working toward that goal every single day," Rudolph said in response to 102.5 DVE's Mike Prisuta when asked about potentially succeeding Roethlisberger next season. "I can only control myself and the way I prepare and the way I approach and play in OTAs and camp, and that's on the forefront of my mind.
"I'm not worried about '22 or anything like that. I'm trying to live in the moment and be the best I can for my team."
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The 25-year-old is the only Steelers quarterback under contract in 2022 after agreeing to a one-year, $5 million extension this offseason.

Pittsburgh also has former Washington Football Team first-round pick Dwayne Haskins and former University of Tennessee standout Josh Dobbs signed to one-year contracts.

"I think you're always excited and looking forward to competition," Rudolph said. "You know that it's going to be there each and every year, it's just a matter of who. ... Competition makes everybody better, and you look forward to that, especially in the offseason."

Roethlisberger, who agreed to renegotiate his contract this offseason, seems to be impressed by Haskins during OTAs, claiming the former Ohio State standout had the "prettiest" throwing mechanics he's ever seen.

“I was just telling [new Steelers quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan] the other day that his release and throwing motion mechanics are some of the prettiest I have ever seen,” Roethlisberger said of Haskins via TribLIVE during a media session earlier this month. “I told him I wish I had that. I joked that he could throw it through a car wash, and it wouldn’t get wet.”

Haskins was cut by the Washington Football Team after being demoted for the second time during the 2020 season in December, 20 months after the franchise selected the former Ohio State standout at No. 15 overall in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Haskins was benched for backup Taylor Heinicke during the fourth quarter of Washington's 20-13 loss to the Carolina Panthers after completing 14 of 28 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns. The former first-round pick was stripped of his captaincy and fined $40,000 for violating COVID-19 protocol in December after photos leaked appearing to show the quarterback not wearing a mask at his girlfriend's birthday, which had more than 10 attendees.

"Definitely the hardest week of my life. I just want to bounce back and move forward and pray and get my life together," Haskins said after Washington's December loss to the Panthers via ESPN. "I can't really put into words how I'm feeling right now."

Haskins was previously benched earlier in the season leading up to Washington's Week 5 game against the Los Angeles Rams.


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