PALM BEACH, Fla. — Mike Tomlin is staying in touch with Aaron Rodgers and is comfortable with Mason Rudolph as the starting quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
‘‘That’s why we brought him back,‘’ Tomlin said Monday at the league’s annual meetings. ‘’I’m comfortable with that. And we’ve been there before.‘’
Rudolph was 3-1 for the Steelers in 2023 with the loss coming in a wild-card game against Buffalo. Pittsburgh has a new offensive coordinator since Rudolph last played for the team. The offense had mixed results under Arthur Smith last season.
‘‘Mason is not a kid. He’s been around, been in multiple systems and situations,‘’ Tomlin said.
Meanwhile, is Tomlin communicating with Rodgers by calling, texting or FaceTiming the four-time NFL MVP?
‘‘All of the above,‘’ Tomlin said.
Tomlin, who spoke to Pittsburgh reporters a day earlier, addressed a large group of media members surrounding his table during a 30-minute availability for all AFC coaches.
‘‘He’s a free agent,‘’ Tomlin said of Rodgers. ‘’As you guys know, he came to visit last Friday. We had a really productive day. He’s been in this thing a long time. I’ve been in this thing a long time. But it’s no substitute for, you know, intimacy and spending time together and getting to know one another in a non-competitive environment. And so that was really good. But I don’t have any new updates in terms of where the process is. We’ll see where it leads us.‘’
