Report: Mason Rudolph was cleared to play against the Chargers by independent neurologist

In a report from Gerry Dulac from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and unnamed source confirmed Mason Rudolph had been cleared by an independent neurologist and was available to play Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers. According to Dulac, Rudolph wanted to suit up against the Chargers, but by the time he had been cleared to play the Steelers had already dedicated the preparation to starting Devlin Hodges.

While many NFL analysts and commentators felt Rudolph should be held out of the game due to the vicious nature of the hit he absorbed along with the scene that ensued on the field, it is unclear if this factored into the Steelers decision at all. While some injuries may look bad, they are not always to the severity of which they appear. But when it comes to the NFL and head injuries, most of those involved with “promoting the shield” would rather err on the side of caution.

The fact that Rudolph could have dressed and even served as the back-up quarterback is an interesting story as the Steelers had to make a roster move to promote Paxton Lynch from the practice squad. If the Steelers are unable to resign either Jayrone Elliott or Fred Johnson after the waiver period has passed, it will make for a very interesting story as to why the Steelers lost one of their players when the promotion may not have been necessary.

While head coach Mike Tomlin also dismissed any questions about who would be the starting quarterback moving forward, it was also reported that the Steelers plan on returning to Mason Rudolph following the bye week. Luckily for the Steelers, they will not have to answer these questions for over a week as they will take an extended break after several practices early in the week.

In Rudolph’s absence, Hodges led the Steelers to a 24-17 win over the Chargers. Hodges completed 15 of his 20 pass attempts for 132 yards along with one touchdown pass and one interception.

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