Sheldon Richardson hopes he gets to face Mason Rudolph in the Steelers-Browns revenge match next week.
“I hope he plays,” the Browns defensive tackle told 92.3 The Fan after the team’s 41-24 win over the Dolphins. “You see his last game?”
Rudolph, the 24-year-old Steelers quarterback who was a central figure in a stunning Week 11 brawl with the Browns, may have to watch the rematch from the sidelines after another very bad day at the office on Sunday. Rudolph was benched while trailing 7-3 to the winless Bengals and was relieved by Devlin “Duck” Hodges. Rudolph finished the day completing 8-of-16 passes for 85 yards and an interception in the red zone.
The 23-year-old Hodges, an undrafted free agent from Samford University, came in and threw a 79-yard touchdown to James Washington on his first drive. His efforts were good enough to lead Pittsburgh to a 16-10 victory over Cincinnati.
“Mason wasn’t doing enough. Duck came in and provided us with a spark, made a couple plays. … I like the contributions of Duck,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said after the game.
Tomlin said he might have a starter in mind for next week’s game, but declined to say who.
“I like [Hodges’] readiness,” Tomlin said. “I appreciate the efforts of Mason and also appreciate the support of Mason after we made the change. It’s football. We’re not going to read too much into it.”
With Ben Roethlisberger missing most of the season with an elbow injury, this was Rudolph’s chance to prove himself worthy to be the veteran’s successor in Pittsburgh. Instead, the second-year quarterback might lose his job to Hodges.
Rudolph tossed four interceptions before a nasty brawl broke out with eight seconds remaining in the last Steelers-Browns meeting on Nov. 14. The melee resulted in disciplinary action for 33 players, including $732,219 in fines and multiple suspensions. Rudolph was accused of using a racial slur against Cleveland defensive end Myles Garrett, who was suspended indefinitely for his helmet-swinging actions in the fight.
The NFL said it found “no evidence” to support Garrett’s accusation.
The Steelers-Browns rematch is this Sunday, just 17 days after their emotionally charged first faceoff.
