PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mason Rudolph knew what he was getting into. So did the Pittsburgh Steelers.

When Rudolph signed a two-year deal to return to Pittsburgh in March following a one-season stint in Tennessee, he was under no illusion that he would be the starting quarterback in 2025.

If Rudolph learned anything during his time with the Steelers from 2018-23, it was that while the club has long respected his professionalism, it has never viewed him as a long-term solution at quarterback.

The list of players Pittsburgh has turned to over the years includes Devlin “Duck” Hodges, Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett and Russell Wilson, whom the Steelers wooed and then signed in the spring of 2024 just two months after Rudolph authored a late three-game winning streak that pushed a middling Pittsburgh team to the playoffs.

Yet the man who was once so close to walking away from football that he pondered getting his commercial real estate license didn’t hesitate when Pittsburgh offered him a chance to come what he calls “home.”

And while Aaron Rodgers stayed away during the vast majority of Pittsburgh’s offseason program while weighing whether to return for a 21st NFL season, Rudolph took all the snaps with the starters and deftly deflected questions about his own status.

When Rodgers did sign, Rudolph gracefully returned to the role he’s filled for so long while doing what he could to help Rodgers and rookie Will Howard make the transition to Pittsburgh.

Rodgers, in return, served as a sounding board to Rudolph on everything from football to politics to life in general, a departure from relationships with some of the players Rudolph shared the quarterback room with during his initial run with the Steelers.

So maybe it’s fitting that when Rodgers exited Sunday’s 34-12 win over Cincinnati with a left wrist injury that could keep him sidelined for a bit, Pittsburgh’s offense did what it frequently has done when Rudolph is there: It moved the ball methodically if not always spectacularly.

“He’s always delivered when called upon in the past,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said after Rudolph completed 12 of 16 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown. “That’s why we value him. His performance was consistent with what he’s done in the past for us. Not that we take it for granted; we don’t. We appreciate it.”

To a point, anyway.

Regardless of how it goes for Rudolph for however long he might fill in for Rodgers (if at all), there is little chance the Steelers stick with Rudolph once Rodgers is cleared, as they did two years ago when they rolled with Rudolph instead of Pickett down the stretch.

Rudolph doesn’t need to be told Pittsburgh is eyeing landing a franchise quarterback in next year’s draft. While it’s not out of the realm of possibility that those plans could change, Rudolph understands he’s carved out a niche as a pretty solid short-term solution.

It has worked for the Steelers. And he has made it work for him.

“I wouldn’t say easy, but it’s very comfortable to come back in, and you just know where everything is,” he said. “You’ve won games here, and that gives you confidence.”

What’s working

Letting Darnell Washington loose. The mammoth tight end — he’s listed at 6-foot-7 and 265 pounds, though it’s widely accepted he is well above that — spent his first two seasons in the NFL as primarily a blocker and long-term project.

Thanks to a nudge from Rodgers, who has touted Washington’s ability as a receiver since early in training camp, “Mount Washington” is coming into his own. His 31-yard catch-and-run on Sunday was more demolition derby than football and highlighted his unique skill set; whenever the ball is in his hands, the jolt it provides his teammates is palpable.

What needs help

The Steelers opted to stick with what they have at wide receiver at the trade deadline, expressing confidence that the group behind star D.K. Metcalf will step up when required. While it’s hard to argue against the long-term logic of protecting draft assets, Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson combined for just two catches for 22 yards against Cincinnati and did little the week before against the Chargers until garbage time.

Stock up

Running back Kenny Gainwell made a pair of sweet one-handed stabs at swing passes that he turned into extended gains on a day when he finished with a career-high seven receptions for 81 yards, including the second and third touchdown catches of his career.

Stock down

While Jalen Ramsey’s teammates backed him up after the perennial Pro Bowl defensive back was ejected for taking a swing at Cincinnati’s Ja’Marr Chase following an extended trash-talking session that ended with Chase spitting at him (and later getting a one-game suspension ), Ramsey put himself in a position to have the situation escalate.

Ramsey and Chase had to be separated on the previous snap. That didn’t stop them from immediately getting back in each other’s faces after the next play.

“We’ve got to be smarter,” Tomlin said. “We’ve got to stay in football games as individuals.”

Injuries

Outside linebacker Alex Highsmith missed his third game of the season, this time with a pectoral injury. Running back Jaylen Warren tweaked an ankle in the second half. He returned to the field briefly, though he didn’t participate in an actual play when the Steelers called a timeout before the ball was snapped. Kick returner Ke’Shawn Williams entered the concussion protocol after getting hit while returning the opening kickoff.

Key number

77 — Points the Steelers have produced off turnovers this season, tops in the NFL.

Next steps

Try to do something they’ve done just once in the franchise’s 90-plus year history: win in Chicago. Pittsburgh is 1-12 all-time in the Windy City, the only triumph a 37-34 thriller in 1995.