INDIANAPOLIS — The Steelers found an Ohio-born quarterback who led them to a pair of Super Bowl victories and established one of the greatest careers in franchise history 18 years ago. Maybe it’s time to go back to that state to find his replacement.
Mitchell Trubisky, a former No. 2 overall pick who spent last season as a backup with the Buffalo Bills, is being talked about at the NFL combine as much as any of the quarterback prospects who are here this week. And that’s because Trubisky, a native of Mentor, Ohio, who was Ohio’s Mr. Football is 2012, is scheduled to become a free agent March 16.
There are least eight other teams who are shopping for a new quarterback this season. The Steelers could be — and probably are — among the interested.
Trubisky, 27, is hoping to restart his career and live up to the potential that caused the Chicago Bears to trade up to draft him out of North Carolina. Many in the league compare his situation to Ryan Tannehill, who never panned out as the No. 8 overall choice with the Miami Dolphins in 2012 but found a successful second career with the Tennessee Titans.
Bills coach Sean McDermott said “it’s unrealistic to think we could have him back” because of the interest Trubisky is expected to receive in free agency. And Trubisky’s stock, along with some other free-agent quarterbacks, is on the rise because of what is perceived to be a weak draft crop of quarterbacks.
“You look at his career history in Chicago, they went to the playoffs, they won a lot of games,” Bills general manager Brandon Beane said. “When you compare it to young quarterbacks starting as a rookie, I mean, he was drafted highly, and in fairness, I think a lot of it happens because he was drafted so highly and above some of the guys. He was always being compared to them and just, you know, was never gonna be able to live up to some of the things (Patrick) Mahomes and (Deshaun) Watson and some of those guys did.”
Trubisky started 50 of 51 games with the Bears and compiled a 29-21 record with 64 touchdowns and 38 interceptions. He is also the type of mobile quarterback the Steelers have indicated they desire. He ran 209 times for 1,081 yards and nine touchdowns in four seasons with the Bears and might be as fast as any quarterback in the league.
Better yet, it might not cost the Steelers a lot to sign him. He is a coming off a one-year, $2.5 million deal with the Bills, though that number will increase dramatically as other teams show interest in his services.
Trubisky appeared in six games last season with the Bills, where he backed up Josh Allen. He attempted just eight passes, completing six, for 75 yards with one interception. McDermott called him a “class act” and the consummate professional.
“It’s hard to handle a situation where you're coming from basically a career starter to being a backup,” McDermott said. “That's a totally different dynamic, when somebody else is in front of the microphone a couple lockers down from yours. I thought Mitch Trubisky handled that extremely well, as good as anybody could have handled it.
“And then, when given the opportunity to play, whether it was in preseason or the regular season, he did a phenomenal job. Command of the playbook. I want him to go on and do great things for him and his family, which I know he's going to do.”
Not surprisingly, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert has been evasive about what the team plans to do to replace Ben Roethlisberger. The standard response is Mason Rudolph is the starter right now and Dwayne Haskins will get a chance to compete for the starting job. But he said at the combine he will not prioritize whether to add a veteran starter or drafting a quarterback.
Nonetheless, the Steelers are intrigued about the possibility of adding a player such as Trubisky, who fits the mold of the type of mobile quarterback they would seek better than Marcus Mariota or Jameis Winston, to name a few.
“I would say we’re open to any,” Colbert said. “We have two vets in Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins. They both have started NFL games and they’ve won games. We think we have two capable NFL quarterbacks. How we add to that, I couldn’t say because that would just continue to evolve.”
Who knows? Maybe there is some symmetry by replacing Roethlisberger, who grew up in Findlay, Ohio, with a quarterback who grew up 140 miles away from Cleveland.
Beane said he thinks Trubisky will get an opportunity to start somewhere in the NFL in 2022.
“You know, for his ups and downs in Chicago, he never said a negative word about anything,” Beane said. “And I've been around players, when they've come from a stop that didn't go as well, and they can't help themselves — 'Man, I like this place better because y'all do this and that.' And Mitch, never. He's such a pro. I’ve got nothing but positive things for him.”
