Mason Rudolph had not yet officially cleared the league's concussion protocol, but Mike Tomlin said Wednesday that when that happened, Rudolph would return to the role as the team's starting quarterback.
"That guy is our quarterback when he clears the protocol, and it's as simple as that," Tomlin said. "We appreciate the efforts of Duck (Devlin Hodges) and all, but as soon as he is ready to go, he's ready to go."
Rudolph was subsequently cleared in concussion protocol Wednesday afternoon by an independent neurologist.
Hodges, an undrafted rookie out of Samford, started in place of Rudolph in last Sunday's 24-17 win at Los Angeles against the Chargers. He completed 15-of-20 passes for 132 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Rudolph suffered a concussion two weeks ago in a 26-23 overtime loss to the Ravens when he was hit illegally in the helmet by safety Earl Thomas, who was fined for the hit. Rudolph was knocked unconscious on the play.
He resumed practicing on a limited basis last week, but had not been cleared by an independent neurologist.
The Steelers, who have a bye this week, canceled their practice Wednesday after some meetings and won't return to the Rooney Sports Complex until Monday, when they begin preparations for their next game Oct. 28 at Heinz Field against the Dolphins.
"Technically, he's still in the concussion protocol," Tomlin said Wednesday morning. "Really, there's no urgency in getting him out of the protocol because we don't work again until Monday. He's been cleared to participate in the things we have been doing. He would have been a full participant had we worked out today, so it's probably semantics in terms of clearance."
Rudolph, a 2018 third-round draft pick, has completed 67 percent of his passes for 646 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions in two starts and a half of a third game.
Tomlin was pleased to get a victory against the Chargers, improving his team's record to 2-4 despite having to use three different starting quarterbacks, including Ben Roethlisberger, who was lost for the season at the end of the first half a Week 2 loss to the Seahawks.
He said his team is currently in "survival" mode, which is why there's no question he'll return to Rudolph when he's ready to go. But he appreciated what he got from Hodges last week.
"He didn't kill us. That's what you need from young quarterbacks," Tomlin said. "He generally took care of the ball and made the plays he needed to make. But we were thoughtful about the positions we put him in. We converted three or four possession downs via the run. We dumped off the flat and allowed James Conner to win them after the catch. We did the things we needed to do to secure victory in that instance."
Tomlin did say the team could get some of the players who missed the Chargers game with injuries back on the field when they return to practice Monday. That would include fullback Roosevelt Nix (knee), corner Steven Nelson (groin), linebacker Mark Barron (hamstring) and wide receiver James Washington (shoulder).
Of that group, Nix has been out the longest. He had his knee scoped following a Week 1 loss at New England.
Meanwhile, Tomlin confirmed defensive end Stephon Tuitt had suffered a tear in his pectoral muscle that landed him on injured reserve. Tuitt will have surgery to repair that injury as soon as today.
LOLLEY'S VIEW
Rudolph clearly gives the Steelers the best chance to win each week. He was playing his best game against the Ravens before being knocked out of that contest.
As for the other injuries, it can be expected that the Steelers should be close to 100 percent health -- with the notable exceptions of Roethlisberger and Tuitt -- when they return to play. Only Jaylen Samuels, who had a knee scope a little over a week ago, could still be missing.
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