PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It's a pair of back-up, or in Mason's case, third-string quarterbacks who are free agents at the end of the season with an opportunity to show what they can do not only for their teams, but for their career's beyond Saturday.
Mason Rudolph was clear that it's about getting in the playoffs right now.
"Hopefully we'll get another game next week," Rudolph said. "But I'm loving playing for this team and I'm loving winning games, and we'll keep trying to do that. And I'll sit down with my agent, my family and kind of debrief what's going on. But it's been great. It's been a lot of fun."
"[This is an] opportunity to get out there and play some ball and get another win for the Ravens," said Baltimore QB Tyler Huntley. "I'm just going to seize the moment and do what I do."
Rudolph has faced the Ravens once, losing 26-23 in 2019 throwing for 131 yards and a touchdown.
Huntley lost to the Steelers in overtime 16-13 at the end of the 2021 season throwing for 141 yards with two picks. Huntley has also beaten the Steelers 16-14 in 2022 throwing for just 88 yards and lost 16-13 on January 8 of last year throwing for 130 yards with a TD and an INT.
"I don't feel like they change too much," said Steelers defensive lineman Montravius Adams. "They are similar quarterbacks, of course Lamar is further along in his career. We don't have to change too much defensively. The main thing with this game is mindset and nothing really changes."
Steelers corner Chandon Sullivan said Huntley has elusiveness like Lamar Jackson calling him a dual-threat quarterback. Someone they have to keep their eyes on at all times.
"I've faced them before too," Sullivan said. "They are still going to run the same offense. They still have dynamic receivers. We got to take it just as seriously as anybody."
"We've been in the stadium with him," said Steelers defensive coordinator Teryl Austin. "So we know he's a quality player. Obviously, you know what kind of season Lamar (Jackson) is having. No matter who is behind center for them, we're going to have our work cut out for us."
Huntley, like Rudolph, feels like he's a better quarterback now than he was for the last matchup. He's also under a new offense with Todd Monken as the first-year offensive coordinator and believes he understands his assignment and where people are going and is eager to show it Saturday.
"[The Steelers] are a physical team, and it's always a good game," Huntley said. "We've just got to just score points, and our defense is going to handle the rest."
"That's a big opportunity to go out there and play against a defense like [Pittsburgh] – one of the top defenses in the league," said Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. "It's a great opportunity for him, but he's ready for it. I'm looking forward to seeing him play."
It comes down to this, can the Steelers third-string QB beat the Ravens second-stringer? Given all the crazy things about this season, kinda fitting.
