Why did the Steelers bench Mitch Trubisky Pittsburgh turns to Mason Rudolph as n

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Mike Tomlin is playing the role of Santa Claus a week before Christmas, turning to Rudolph to help guide his team through what has been a difficult ride.Tomlin announced on Monday that the Steelers would be making a change at quarterback ahead of their Week 16 game against the Bengals. Mason Rudolph will get the start for Pittsburgh instead of Mitch Trubisky.Trubisky entered the season as the team's top backup quarterback behind Kenny Pickett, but he has struggled in his efforts to replace the second-year pa ser. The Steelers have dropped three consecutive games  including Trubisky's two starts  so Tomlin is evidently hoping that the team Frank Jackson Jersey  can get better results with Rudolph leading the way.Rudolph is in his sixth season with the Steelers since being a second-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. He hasn't made a start since he led Pittsburgh to a tie against the Lions in 2021 and hasn't won a start since Week 12 of the 2019 season.Nonethele s, he will be tasked with bringing the Steelers back from the brink of elimination and keeping Tomlin's streak of non-losing seasons alive.POWER RANKINGS: Here's what to know about the Steelers' decision to bench Trubisky in favor of Rudolph.Why did the Steelers bench Mitch Trubisky?The Steelers are making the switch to Rudolph from Trubisky for a simple reason, as Tomlin told reporters at a news conference Monday. It's all about the offense's lack of productivity."We don't like what we're looking at in the consistency of it," Tomlin said of his offense. "What I mean is we're not scoring enough points."The Steelers' offense has been lacking all season and the team has looked for any way to spark its productivity. That's part of the reason that offensive coordinator after Week 11; the team responded to that with a 400-yard game, its first since 2020.It would appear that the same logic is driving Tomlin's decision to bench Trubisky, who has completed just 62.6 percent of his pa ses for 632 yards, four Julius Randle Jersey  touchdowns and five interceptions. Tomlin was, however, careful not to "dump the outcome of the game at Mitch's feet.""It's more about really Mason Rudolph being deserving of an opportunity and us trying to change the trajectory of what's been transpiring," Tomlin explained.Tomlin also implied that the transition to Rudolph should be relatively smooth given his experience with the team."He's a backup,  Anthony Davis Jersey but he's also a veteran guy," Tomlin said of Rudolph. "He's been in our program a long time. He's here for those reasons. We got a great deal of comfort with him."That said, while Rudolph is preparing to start, Tomlin did leave the door "ajar" for Pickett to potentially return. Still, the second-year quarterback is going to be limited in practice this week, in all likelihood, so it doesn't seem that they are trying to rush him back into action.MORE: What happened to Kenny Pickett?Pickett suffered an ankle injury in the Steelers' 24-10 lo s to the Cardinals after running for a short gain on third-and-goal.My view of the Kenny Pickett play.  Donnie Druin (@DonnieDruin) Pickett eventually left the field under his own power but was quickly ruled out for Derrick Favors Jersey  the game. He would later be ruled out for multiple weeks and had minor surgery to repair the ankle injury.Pickett has already mi sed two weeks of action because of the malady, so  as Tomlin noted  there may be a chance for him to return soon.Still, it doesn't seem overly likely that he will be on the field for the Steelers-Bengals game on Saturday. That means Rudolph is likely to make his first start of the season as he looks to prove himself as a better backup than Trubisky.MORE: Mason Rudolph contract vs. Mitch Trubisky contractRudolph, 28, is currently playing on a one-year contract worth $1.08 million that he signed during the 2023 NFL offseason. The Steelers made him the offer to bring him back as a third-string option, but if he outplays Trubisky, he could win the backup job full-time. That would earn him a potential offseason raise.Meanwhile, Trubisky has three years remaining on his contract. One stems from the original two-year deal he signed with the Steelers during the 2022 NFL offseason while the latter two are from a two-year extension that Trubisky signed over the summer.The money remaining on Trubisky's contract beyond 2023 is worth up to $11.25 millionover two seasons. Below is a deeper dive into Trubisky's contract. Year Base salary Bonuses Cap hit Dead cap 2023 $1,080,000 $4,931,667 $6,011,666 $10,625,000 2024 $4,250,000 $2,306,667 $1,000,000 $4,613,333 2025 $5,000,000 $2,306,667 $1,000,000 $2,306,667The Steelers can get out of Trubisky's contract after the 2023 season with just $4.33 million in  Kira Lewis Jr. Jersey dead-cap space. So, if Rudolph overtakes him, Trubisky could play elsewhere next season.And even if he doesn't, Trubisky could still end up being a cap casualty because of his poor performance.