"When you ain't got nothing, you've got nothing to lose." -- Bob Dylan, Like a Rolling Stone
That line from a song written 55 years ago is the mantra not only for the Steelers this season, it could be the theme of Devlin "Duck" Hodges' NFL story as it's being written.
The former Samford star, undrafted and unsigned following the draft, has been the kind of story typically only written in Hollywood.
At this point, he and the Steelers are just hoping for a Hollywood-style ending.
Hodges was named the Steelers' starting quarterback for Sunday's critical AFC North showdown with the Browns (5-6) at Heinz Field. At 6-5, the Steelers currently hold the final spot in the AFC playoffs with five games remaining.
"You get a guy who also realizes this is an opportunity to kind of solidify himself in this league, make a name for himself," guard Ramon Foster said of Hodges. "If he gets on a run, there’s no telling what could happen for him moving forward. I think he has that chip on his shoulder of being from a small school. He has that working for him. I love it. I’m going to support him. I’m not here to pit him against Mason. I’m just going to assess what’s going on."
What's going on is the Steelers, playing without franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and with 2018 third-round draft pick Mason Rudolph struggling in his past two starts, are placing their trust in Duck.
Rudolph, who had nine touchdown passes and three interceptions in his first six starts, had fallen on hard times in his two most recent ones. In his last six quarters, he threw one touchdown and five interceptions, including a four-interception game at Cleveland two weeks ago.
Mike Tomlin, when announcing the quarterback change on Tuesday, said the biggest thing he is looking for from Hodges is to "not kill us." That means taking care of the football and not turning it over.
Hodges gets that. As much as he's seen as a gambler, he also knows he has to be smart with the football. But he's also not going to play afraid.
"I think a lot of it is I don’t have anything to lose," Hodges said Wednesday. "I was undrafted. And that’s something I’ve always been. I’ve always been calm, cool and collected. It comes from being prepared and having guys around me that are as good as they are that can block up from and make the catches and run the ball, it makes my job a lot easier."
Hodges entered last week's 16-10 victory over the Bengals with the Steelers trailing 7-3 in the third quarter and threw a 79-yard touchdown pass to James Washington on his first possession.
Tuesday, as Tomlin was announcing Hodges would start Sunday, he spent the day with Washington hunting ducks.
Good morning with @JamesWashington #huntthemorningsonoffday pic.twitter.com/9MxLPKC8Kb
— Devlin Hodges (@DevlinHodges10) November 26, 2019
"Last Tuesday, we got invited to Brett Keisel’s hunt," Hodges said. "This week, we had Tuesday off and we said, ‘Let’s hunt.’ It’s nice to get away from football and just clear your mind."
In his one start in Los Angeles against the Chargers while subbing for a concussed Rudolph, Hodges completed 15 of 20 passes for 132 yards with one touchdown and one interception in a 24-17 win. He also scrambled three times for eight yards.
Overall, Hodges has completed 27 of 40 passes for 318 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in eight quarters of play. He's also run for 29 yards on eight rushing attempts.
"He plays with a lot of confidence to be sure," offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner said. "You wouldn’t be able to tell he’s from a small school. He played against big schools when he was at the small school. He has a sense ease and he plays with a sense of rhythm. He’s been good with what we’ve asked him to do for us."
What remains to be seen is how long this latest starting chance lasts.
Tomlin said Tuesday he was making the decision to go to Hodges as a week-by-week thing and that he could change back to Rudolph at any time.
"The only thing I want to do is do whatever it takes to get the win," Hodges said. "That’s the only thing that matters this week and then we’ll go from there."
After all, when you're not supposed to be here in the first place, you've got nothing to lose. Hodges was released by the team at the end of training camp but signed back when the Steelers traded Josh Dobbs to the Jaguars after Week 1.
Now, he'll start their biggest game of the season, with perhaps their season on the line.
In that situation, why not turn things over to the guy with nothing to lose? After all, the Steelers have a bunch of players who were in similar spots at some point in their careers, undrafted players who have earned their spot on the team.
"Maybe it’s because he has been overlooked and he feels like he’s the underdog and what does he have to lose?" Fichtner said. "I tend to believe we should all feel like that in our own way. It’s not a right to be here. It’s a privilege and honor and you’ve got to respect that process."
To that point, four of the five offensive linemen that will start in front of Hodges Sunday against the Browns were undrafted players.
They respect the process, including what it takes to stick on an NFL roster as an undrafted player, let alone start a game.
"He has this playmaker ability about him," Foster said. "He wants to show he can play in this league and I love it. That’s what this league is built on. There are a lot of low-round undrafted guys who are making their way. Look at Al (Villanueva). Look at Matt (Feiler). Look at (B.J.) Finney. Look at myself. Across the board, there are a lot of those type of guys. He’s just another that wants to prove people wrong. I appreciate that."
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