It seems moving on from Kenny Pickett and Mason Rudolph could be best for their new offensive coordinator..
In case you haven’t heard, the Steelers have a big question at quarterback that needs to be answered in the next two months. Kenny Pickett is the only quarterback currently under contract, but he was outplayed by third-string Mason Rudolph last year. While re-signing impending free agent Mason Rudolph could be the Steelers’ answer to the quarterback conundrum, it’s still debatable if that’s the best option. With that, national media has pegged just about every potentially available quarterback as a potential target for the Steelers this offseason.
Not every quarterback fits every offense, and the Steelers hired Arthur Smith to run the offense going forward. How might Pickett, Rudolph, and other quarterbacks potentially on the Steelers’ radar would fit into this new style offense?
Arthur Smith’s offensive tendencies
New OC Arthur Smith prefers a distinct style of offense based on his two years as the Titan offensive coordinator and three years as the Falcon head coach, and that style favors some quarterbacks over others. Smith likes to run the ball and utilize two concepts the Steelers used very little last year with Rudolph and Pickett — a quarterback lined up under center and play action passes.
Per Pro Football Reference, which will be used for all stats referenced throughout this article, Smith’s final product with the Tennessee Titans used the quarterback under center on 34% of the passing snaps while using play action (including shotgun play action) on 32% of the passing snaps.
Similarly, the final version of his offense in Atlanta used under-center formations on 32% of passing plays and play action on 25%. This is a monumental shift from the 2023 Steelers, who used these concepts on 11.5% and 13% of plays, respectively.
Comparison of experience in an Arthur Smith-type offense
Now, let’s look at the experience of six of the Steelers’ potential options at quarterback in the coming season to see who might be the most comfortable with the style of offense Smith will likely execute with the Steelers.
Here’s a look at quarterback under-center passing snaps versus play action from 2023 (including shotgun play action) as a percentage of each quarterback’s total pass plays. Numbers are rounded to the nearest percentage point.
