Tomlin Tuesday: Rudolph to Start, Watt Ruled Out, and More
Mike Tomlin kicked off Wild Card Week with his usual ‘Tomlin Tuesday’ Press Conference.
If you’re here reading this right now, it’s pretty obvious which announcements we were waiting on, and he wasted no time getting into it. After a very brief synopsis of his thoughts on our week 18 win in Baltimore, he jumped right into player availability for our Wild Card game against the Buffalo Bills.
As expected, TJ Watt will not be available to us this week due to the knee injury he suffered on Saturday. When asked about the depth at outside linebacker without TJ Watt, Coach Tomlin said: “We’re as deep at that position as we’ve been in some time.” He credits Nick Herbig and Markus Golden for their readiness and availability, and those two are going to take the lion’s share of the snaps in place of TJ Watt. Those are some MASSIVE shoes to fill, but the availability of that STUD on the other side named Alex Highsmith, as well as Keeanu Benton and Cam Heyward on the interior, should take some of the pressure off Golden and Herbig.
Another crucial announcement that yinzers were waiting on was the quarterback position. No surprises here (at least not to me); QB Mason Rudolph will get the start, and Kenny Pickett will dress as the backup.
Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and inside linebacker Elandon Roberts will both practice in a limited capacity in the early portions of the week (I’m not quoting Mike Tomlin directly there, I just can’t help but talk like him, because I’ve watched so damn many of these). He did his usual “we will let the quality of their participation be our guide” when dictating their availability in Buffalo this weekend, although he was willing to express some optimism about the return of Minkah Fitzpatrick, which will be MASSIVE. Our secondary played well against Baltimore, but the Ravens were playing without Odell Beckham Jr., Lamar Jackson, and Zay Flowers. Josh Allen, Dalton Kincaid, and Stefon Diggs are a whole different beast we’ll have to deal with this weekend, so we need all the help we can get in our secondary.
Additional good news for our secondary includes the return of safety Damontae Kazee from suspension. Again, Tomlin said that they’re going to evaluate his readiness and create a division of labor accordingly. Patrick Peterson has been taking a ton of snaps at safety in recent weeks due to the attrition at the safety position. Mike Tomlin was asked if Patrick Peterson would move back to his natural corner position with the impending return of Kazee and Minkah, and he said: “That’s an option.”
Safety Eric Rowe really shined last week in lieu of the absences we’ve faced as a defense recently, so the depth we could have in our secondary just in time for the playoffs is really reassuring.
It’ll be fascinating to see how the division of labor shakes out on the defensive side of the ball as the week progresses. We’re heating up and getting some necessary depth at the right time. Not having TJ this week is rough, but there’s a ton of excitement for Nick Herbig, and I’m eager to see what kind of impact he can have for us in what is sure to be a dog fight this weekend in Buffalo.
It’s the fuckin playoffs, baby. And we’re in the kitchen. Here. We. Go.
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