Who needs Aaron Rodgers or Will Howard when you have Mason Rudolph and the Thompy Gun, Skylar Thompson?
All kidding aside, the Pittsburgh Steelers offense looked pretty solid Saturday night in the preseason opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road in a 31-25 win, leaning heavily on the right arm of Thompson. Meanwhile, unheralded receivers like Max Hurleman, Ke’Shawn Williams and Roc Taylor made some big plays leading to the win.
Defensively, Pittsburgh was able to do just enough, holding on late to get the team’s first preseason win since Aug. 24, 2023 over the Atlanta Falcons.
Sitting at 1-0 in the preseason and seeing some young players step up in big moments and help their cases for roster spots, the Steelers have to be feeling pretty good with the opening performance.
Let’s get to some grades.
QB — A-
Rudolph started the game for the Steelers and was nearly perfect on the night, executing coordinator Arthur Smith’s offense flawlessly. Rudolph opened the game 7 of 7 for 70 yards on the opening drive, connecting with Roman Wilson for a big gainer off play-action. Rudolph later hit Darnell Washington for a 19-yard touchdown to open the scoring for the Black and Gold.
He finished 9 for 10 on the night for 84 yards and a score, while he was sacked just one time for 10 yards. Rudolph was crisp, looked good in play-action and pushed the ball down the field well, being aggressive within the offense.
Once Rudolph came out, Thompson played the majority of the game and had one heck of a night.
Thompson completed 20 of 28 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns, looking poised within Smith’s offense. He was accurate, drove the ball down the field, stood tall against pressure and made some big-time throws. His best throw of the night was the ball he put up for Williams on the eventual game-winning touchdown, staring down the blitz and putting up a jump ball for the UDFA receiver, who made one heck of a play.
Really impressive night for Thompson.
Logan Woodside, who was signed Thursday, played the final offensive series and didn’t attempt a pass. He had one rush for -2 yards on a read-option that he kept and tried to run around left end.
RB — C
Rookie Kaleb Johnson made his debut and had some decent moments, but there wasn’t much running room for him on the night. He carried the football eight times for 20 yards with a long of seven yards. At times, he had some running room, and did have a highlight in his preseason debut, stepping through a tackle attempt from Jaguars’ cornerback Travis Hunter.
But too often, there wasn’t much running room for Johnson. He added one catch for six yards, but also had one throw bounce off his back when he wasn’t expecting a throw from Rudolph, leading to an incompletion.
Lew Nichols looked good in limited action, leading the Steelers with 31 yards on six carries. He had a long of 14 yards on the night, turning the corner off left end for the big run. He even lowered the boom on a short-yardage run, barreling through a defender. Very intriguing night for the young running back.
Evan Hull had a busy night, carrying the ball six times and adding one reception. He was all over the place, seeing three targets in the passing game, and even had a key fumble recovery to preserve points for the Steelers. Trey Sermon had a nice 11-yard touchdown in the screen game, but was quiet in the run game.
WR — B+
A really nice night for the wide receivers, especially young guys down the roster battling for practice squad roles.
Max Hurleman made some plays in the passing game, as did Ke’Shawn Williams and Roc Taylor. Williams led the Steelers with 55 yards on two catches, including his leaping 29-yard score in which he pulled the ball out of the air over a Jacksonville defender. Hurleman added two receptions for 29 yards and a score, including a 26-yarder up the seam.
Taylor had two receptions for 38 yards, including a long of 22 yards, making plays down the field.
Veteran Scotty Miller made some plays in the second quarter for the Steelers, finishing with a team-high four receptions for 47 yards, including a long of 22 yards up the seam. Robert Woods had one catch for four yards and Ben Skowronek had one catch for three yards.
The big development was Roman Wilson making a play right away for the Steelers, hauling in a 19-yard pass from Rudolph on the first play from scrimmage for the Steelers offense off play-action. Wilson added a 5-yarder on a screen.
TE — B-
If the Steelers really tap into Darnell Washington as a weapon in the passing game, especially in the red zone, look out. Washington had just one target on the night, but it went for a 19-yard touchdown in which he slipped up the seam and high-pointed the ball from Rudolph for the score, dragging a defender into the end zone.
It was a great design, and it shows just what Washington can do if utilized.
Outside of Washington, Connor Heyward had two catches for 17 yards on the night, and JJ Galbreath added one catch for six yards. Heyward had a holding penalty in the run game, though, dropping his grade. Galbreath didn’t have much impact as a blocker as the Steelers dressed just three tight ends.
Still, the impact Washington had as a receiver boosted the grade in a big way.
OL — C-
Pass protection was rather strong for the Steelers on the night, especially from the starting unit. Both Broderick Jones and Troy Fautanu had strong reps in pass protection, though Fautanu did have a penalty. Mason McCormick and Zach Frazier were steady on the inside, too.
Spencer Anderson was charged with a sack allowed, but it was a coverage sack for the Jaguars and Rudolph never got rid of the football.
The backup offensive line was a mess. Doug Nester really struggled at guard, getting beat a handful of times in the run game. Steven Jones had some struggles in pass protection at right tackle, and Andrus Peat had a penalty in the game. Gareth Warren had a tough time at right tackle in the second half, too.
The Steelers look like a team that really needs to add a veteran lineman after cutdowns, as things stand right now.
DL — C-
The run defense wasn’t much of an issue. Though Jacksonville averaged 4.0 yards per carry, the longest run of the night was eight yards. The Steelers were assignment sound, at least, but the defensive line didn’t really control the line of scrimmage.
Derrick Harmon was largely invisible. Nothing to be concerned about, but he didn’t really stand out. Yahya Black had a tackle, making his presence felt quickly against the run, but that was about the only real impact he had.
Esezi Otomewo had a nice tackle against the run, shooting through to make the stop, but he didn’t generate much of anything as a pass rusher. Breiden Fehoko didn’t have an impact, though he should have drawn a penalty for hands to the face, losing his helmet on a pass rush with no call.
Isaiahh Loudermilk’s roughing the passer wiped out Cameron McCutcheon’s interception, though the call seemed fairly soft on replay.
LB — B-
It was great to see Cole Holcomb back on the field in a game for the Steelers, and he had a significant impact. Holcomb returned to an NFL game for the first time since that devastating knee injury in Week 9 of the 2023 season. Though it was just preseason, it was a huge step forward for him.
The veteran linebacker had just one tackle, but he forced an incompletion on third down early in the game, covering a good amount of ground to get to the flat. He also was effective with pressure early in the game, and moved around well, showing off his range.
Rookie Carson Bruener looked solid in the second half, finding himself around the football a lot. He led the Steelers with six tackles and had a key stick in the open field in the fourth quarter. He also opened the game with a tackle on the opening kickoff, showing his abilities on special teams as he competes for a roster spot.
It was a disappointing night for Malik Harrison, who had a missed tackle on the Jaguars’ touchdown run in the third quarter. He had just one tackle in the game and wasn’t that impact piece as a run defender or special teamer for the Steelers.
Mark Robinson had three tackles in limited action, finding himself around the football when on the field. Really liked what I saw from Payton Wilson early, too. He blew up an early run play by slipping a block and getting into the backfield. He also channeled his own WWE character with a suplex tackle on an early run, showing off his physicality.
Devin Harper quietly had five tackles in the game. He didn’t stand out in live watch, but it will be interesting to see how he racked up his five tackles.
DB — C+
He was on my bubble coming into the game, and he might remain there for the time being, but Beanie Bishop Jr. flashed quite a bit on the night. He had six tackles and broke up a pass in the win. He played physically early on, throwing his body around in an effort to make plays. It was noted.
D’Shawn Jamison has quietly had a strong training camp and was around the football a lot on Saturday night. He had three tackles and was consistently tight in coverage. Same for Brandin Echols, who’s been a rock so far in training camp. He nearly had an interception Saturday night and continues to put together some good football.
James Pierre quietly had a strong night, too. He had five tackles and looked good in coverage against Brian Thomas Jr. and Travis Hunter early on, which is very encouraging. Cameron McCutcheon showed off his size and length by high-pointing the interception, but it was called off by the roughing the passer on Loudermilk. Still, a good play by the corner.
It was nice to see Juan Thornhill have some good plays early on, delivering a big blow to Thomas on a route over the middle to force an incompletion. Then, he came downhill in run support for a stop. Loved seeing him throw his weight around.
Kyler McMichael had a rough night, missing two tackles in open space within a three-play span, leading to two big gains for Jacksonville. That’s not going to help him stick around, even on the practice squad.
Special Teams — A-
Cam Little’s 70-yard field goal for the Jaguars stole the show, but the Steelers had a strong night on special teams. Williams showed some juice in the return game, and some young pieces were key in coverage units.
UDFA kicker Ben Sauls drilled all four extra points and made a 36-yard field goal, while Cameron Johnston and Corliss Waitman had great nights punting the football. Waitman had a 57-yard punt in his only attempt, while Johnston had a 52-yard punt and a 42-yard punt, with one downed inside the 20 as Hurleman raced down and helped make a tackle at the 15.
