Trade rumors swirling around Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. have calmed things around quarterback Mason Rudolph recently. But no one is safe from the NFL rumor mill.
On Wednesday, Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox released his 2026 NFL trade block big board entering Week 2. Rudolph made the list, and Knox proposed a new landing spot for the veteran quarterback — the Atlanta Falcons.
Knox also projected Rudolph to be worth a conditional 2027 sixth-round pick.
“Like the Jaguars, the Pittsburgh Steelers won their opener and are probably thinking more about a playoff run than the trade deadline. However, Pittsburgh also has a surplus of quarterbacks, with Mason Rudolph, Drew Allar, and Will Howard sitting behind starter Aaron Rodgers,” wrote Knox.
“According to longtime NFL reporter Jason La Canfora, the Steelers are open to trading Rudolph if they can find a buyer.
“The Falcons have a quarterback mess on their hands.”
The Steelers saw that mess first hand in Week 1. While Pittsburgh’s defense played very well, Falcons starting signal-caller Cooper Rush also struggled to generate much power on his throws. Rush entered the season as Atlanta’s QB3, and he started the season opener despite experiencing back spasms a day prior.
Atlanta’s top two quarterbacks, Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., are both unavailable because of injury. It’s unclear when their statuses could change.
Rudolph is 9-9-1 in his career as an NFL starter. Without him, the Steelers would still have Will Howard and Drew Allar to backup Aaron Rodgers.
Would the Falcons Be Interested in Mason Rudolph?
Rush and Rudolph are actually pretty similar quarterbacks. After Sunday’s loss, Rush is 9-8 in his career as a starter with 21 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He’s averaged 6.3 yards per pass in 38 games.
Across 34 contests, Rudolph has 30 touchdowns and 22 interceptions with a 6.7 yards per attempt average in his career. Both signal-callers are in their early thirties.
With that in mind, it’s worth wondering if Rudolph is a significant enough upgrade over Rush for the Falcons to be interested. A trade could work, though, if the Steelers only receive a pick conditional upon Rudolph playing in front of Rush.
In Rudolph, the Falcons might only get a minor upgrade over Rush. But Rudolph is healthy and offers a lot more experience than undrafted rookie Jack Strand.
Given how Rush might have struggled through his injury in Week 1, it’s pretty clear Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski doesn’t want the inexperienced Strand to play. Rudolph would give Atlanta another option.
From Pittsburgh’s perspective, a conditional Day 3 pick has been one of the better proposals pitched for Rudolph.
Why the Steelers Shouldn’t Trade Rudolph
Rudolph has value on the trade market as an experienced veteran. The Steelers could leverage that into extra draft capital. But Week 1 around the league showcased why that might be a dangerous idea.
In Week 1 alone, the NFL saw Sam Darnold and Kyler Murray get hurt. Tagovailoa suffered an injury before even playing in a game.
If Rodgers suffered an injury, the Steelers would be forced to turn to the inexperienced Howard or Allar. That’s far from ideal for a club that wants to be a Super Bowl contender.
So while Rudolph has trade value, he likely has more value for the Steelers remaining on the team’s roster as insurance.
The Steelers have to dedicate four roster spots behind center to keep Rodgers, Rudolph, Howard and Allar. That’s not ideal either. But the team is already doing that, making a quarterback trade less urgent than it was in August.
If the Steelers badly need another roster spot for a different position, then a Rudolph trade would make sense. But the Steelers appear pretty satisfied with their roster, and they don’t have a lot of injuries entering Week 2. They can afford to continue keeping Rudolph as a quality backup.
There’s plenty of time, though, for that to change. The NFL trade deadline isn’t until Tuesday, November 10.
Proposed NFL Trade Sends Steelers’ Mason Rudolph to New Landing Spot