When the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Skylar Thompson to begin the offseason, nobody expected him to be more than a camp body. Then, Thompson lit up the stat sheet in three straight preseason games. That’s got some fans thinking he could make the roster, and could even take Mason Rudolph’s spot as the second quarterback on the depth chart.
Steelers insider Mark Kaboly does not hold that same belief.
“Let’s just stop this nonsense about Skylar Thompson being the No. 2 quarterback because he’s played better than Rudolph,” Kaboly wrote in a long-form post on X on Friday. “I am not denying that Thompson hasn’t played well, but this is a quarterback who has started games in the NFL before, and now he is throwing the ball against third- and fourth-string defensive backs.”
The preseason can be a mess at times, which was evident last night. But at some point we need to take these performances into consideration. When doing so, it’s hard to understand placing Thompson behind Rudolph on the depth chart at this point.
Steelers fans generally like Rudolph, and his previous spot starts have been decent. However, this preseason was not good from his perspective. Against Tampa Bay, he tried to throw a ball down the seam, but threw an interception instead. He did almost the same exact thing Thursday against Carolina. Yes, you can make the argument that he’s playing against better competition than Thompson. However, you could also argue anybody worthy of stepping on an NFL field should intercept this pass, even in the preseason.
On the other hand, Skylar Thompson has looked simply terrific. He’s making few mistakes, and seems to be operating Arthur Smith’s offense as a high level. Thursday, he stepped in and completed 11-of-13 attempts for 152 yards and a touchdown.
Perhaps Rudolph’s experience with the franchise gives him the upper hand. But he’s never played in Arthur Smith’s offense, and there’s a reason Will Levis beat him out in Tennessee last year. On the other hand Thompson also has starting experience. He nearly won a playoff game against the Buffalo Bills when he played for the Miami Dolphins.
With Will Howard still nursing a finger injury, this decision gets even more complicated. Kaboly thinks Thompson may get the short end of the stick there, too.
“For my money, I still think Thompson gets cut and Will Howard assumes that No. 3 role despite still nursing a finger injury,” Kaboly wrote.
Keeping Howard over Thompson does make some sense. The Steelers haven’t seen him in game action yet since drafting him this year. Thompson’s stellar play is worth something, but Howard staying on the roster over him wouldn’t be a bold decision.
That said, if Thompson doesn’t make the roster, one has to wonder what the point of the preseason even is. Between Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson, the latter has looked better consistently, Both quarterbacks are making their debut in an Arthur Smith offense.
Thompson could not have shown much more than he did during these three games. If he doesn’t make the roster in Pittsburgh, he’ll surely land somewhere else.