Former Steelers OG Ramon Foster Admits Mason Rudolph's Success Sparked An Unexpected WR Demotion

The Pittsburgh Steelers have undergone a transformation since Mason Rudolph took over under center. The change happened during the end of the Steelers' Week 15 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. Rudolph took the place of the benched backup Mitch Trubisky, who'd been filling in for an injured Kenny Pickett since Week 13 when he went out with a high ankle sprain just before the half. Rudolph has started the last two games and made magic happen. The Steelers scored at least 30 points for the first time in ages and he has been spreading the ball around to all of the receiving corps and getting both running backs involved. This had previously been a source of contention as the receivers were frustrated they weren't getting targeted enough and the tight ends often seemed to be forgotten. Former Steelers offensive guard Ramon Foster said that this has created an unspoken shift on the depth chart. 

Since Rudolph has taken over the offense, he has proven to be the deep threat that neither Pickett nor Trubisky have been. During their recent win over the Seattle Seahawks, he completed at least five passes that picked up at least 24 yards, three of those going to George Pickens. The week prior against the Cincinnati Bengals, he hit Pickens for 86, 66, and 44 yards. While he also had a 42-yard pass to Diontae Johnson and a 25-yard pass to tight end Pat Freiermuth, it feels like Rudolph has a clear favorite receiver. 

Did The Steelers' Depth Chart Quietly Shift After Mason Rudolph Started?

Foster now co-hosts a podcast called The Ramon Foster Show with Pittsburgh sports reporter Dejan Kovacevic that airs on DK Pittsburgh Sports. On a recent episode, the two broke down the game against the Seahawks and discussed the differences between Rudolph, Trubisky, and Pickett. Foster said he made a big assumption about the wide receivers and he was wrong. 

"I was wrong. I thought for sure that George Pickens was going to take a back seat, but you know what Mason's done? Nobody's ever going to notice this because it's one of the most unspoken things that you can't really say, he's essentially made George number one and Diontae [Johnson] two. And that ain't a bad thing," said Foster.

Kovaevic said that he sees it as a natural consequence of the way Rudolph plays football. He has always been the quarterback that throws deep balls, including when he played college football at Oklahoma State. Rudolph isn't scared to be aggressive. 

He added that he specifically asked Pickens after the game against the Seahawks about his relationship with Rudolph. The question was if he felt like Rudolph was developing trust in him. He said that Pickens noted there is mutual respect and trust, they trust each other. 

The numbers speak for themselves. In the two games that Rudolph has started, he has targeted Pickens nearly twice as much as Johnson. In those two games, Johnson was targeted nine times and had six catches, and Pickens had 15 targets and 11 catches. This is interesting because Rudolph and Johnson joined the team only a year apart, so Johnson has known Rudolph his whole career.