Predicting the next contract for Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph

Kevin Colbert has been adamant that Mason Rudolph is the Steelers quarterback of the future. He still has two years left on his rookie deal but, with Ben Roethlisberger returning to the field, it is unlikely Rudolph will see many (if any) regular season snaps again until his contract is up.

I’m sure many of you may actually be surprised by the numbers you're about to see. But you need to keep in mind how much quarterbacks make, and how much more they will make once Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson sign $50 million+ a year mega deals. So let’s do this right by breaking down Mason’s stats with some comparable players, before they signed their second deal.

Mason Rudolph:

Games started: 8
Win-loss: 5-3
COM-ATT-TDS-INT: 176-283-13-9
Yards: 1765

Jacoby Brissett:

Games started: 17
Win-loss: 5-12
COM-ATT-TDS-INT: 312-528-13-7
Yards: 3500
Contract signed: 2 Years $30 Million

Jimmy Garoppolo

Games started: 7
Win-loss: 7-0
COM-ATT-TDS-INT: 183-274-12-5
Yards: 2250
Contract signed: 5 Years $137.5 Million

AJ McCarron

Games started: 3
Win-loss: 2-1
COM-ATT-TDS-INT: 86-133-6-2
Yards: 920
Contract signed: 2 Years $10 Million

Now obviously, based on stats alone, if Rudolph doesn't play another snap the next two years he will be paid more than AJ McCarron, and would be comparable to Jacoby Brissett. He already has more experience then Jimmy Garoppolo to this point. But unless he gets a few more wins under his belt, he won't be seeing a $100 Million dollar deal.

If the Steelers truly value Mason Rudolph as a starting quarterback and if current trends continue. Expect a short term ‘prove it’ type deal with lower-mid range starter money.

My predicted number:

2 Years $38 Million dollars

I’m sure some of you just spit out your drink, but that's what you have to pay someone to be your starting QB. The $19 million dollar evaluation would place Rudolph as the 18th highest paid QB in 2020, and that position should lower to the low to mid 20’s by 2022.

If Rudolph plays a game here-or-there over the next two years and builds on his .625 career win percentage, he might even be worth more than this amount.

What do you think? Is a starting Mason Rudolph worth $19 Million dollars a year? Let us know in the comments below!