The Steelers held their first practice of training camp on Wednesday and that meant it was the first day to evaluate where things stand in their quarterback competition.
Mitch Trubisky got the first chance to work with the first-team offense, but needed a few passes to find a completion to one of his teammates. Based on head coach Mike Tomlin’s vow not to “micromanage” things between Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, and Kenny Pickett this summer, a few incompletions shouldn’t be a big deal and Trubisky cited that view when he spoke to reporters about his approach.
“He wants us to go out there and play free,” Trubisky said, via Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “He told us that. You’re not worried about every single throw. It’s practice. You’ve got to go out there and test throws. You’ve got to let guys make plays. . . . That’s part of the territory when it comes to quarterback. You’re not holding your head on every single throw. So, you’ve got to let it go, go out there and play. When you’re not thinking about it, that’s when you’re playing your best anyways. That’s what I’m going to try to do during training camp.”
Rudolph said he’s taking a different path and wants “to be near-perfect on every throw, on every handoff and every protection adjustment” during practice, which may be an indication of his place in a competition with a former NFL starter in Trubisky and a 2022 first-round pick in Pickett. All eyes in Pittsburgh will be on which style proves to be a more effective one.