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Pittsburgh Steelers head coach addressed how he thought quarterback Mason Rudolph played in Week 12 against the Chicago Bears.

Quarterback Mason Rudolph completed a high percentage of his passes for the Pittsburgh Steelers in his first start of the 2025 NFL season. But Rudolph didn’t throw for very many yards and turned the ball over twice in a 31-28 loss to the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

Head coach Mike Tomlin addressed how he felt Rudolph performed in place of the injured Aaron Rodgers in Week 12.

“I thought he was game. He always is. He made plays for us, particularly in the fourth quarter,” Tomlin told reporters. “But as a collectively, him included, we didn’t do enough to win.”

Rudolph completed 24 of 31 passes for 171 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also took two sacks, one of which resulted in a lost fumble.

Rudolph averaged just 5.5 yards per attempt.

Mason Rudolph, Steelers Fall Short in Chicago

Rudolph threw an interception on his first pass of the afternoon. He and the offense then responded with a 13-play, 95-yard drive, though, to tie the game at seven.

Rudolph connected with D.K. Metcalf on a 6-yard swing toss for the score, which was a backwards lateral and counted as a Metcalf rushing touchdown.

But the Steelers offense didn’t have a really strong drive again until the fourth quarter.

While trailing by 10 points, Rudolph orchestrated a 17-play, 73-yard drive to pull within three midway through the fourth quarter. The Steelers had an opportunity to put together a go-ahead or game-tying drive twice after that. But the offense stalled both times.

In the final minute of regulation, the Steelers were about 10 yards outside of fringe-Chris Boswell field goal territory. But they gained just four yards on the next three plays, and then Rudolph threw an incomplete pass on fourth-and-six.

On the drive before that, Rudolph had a long run to convert a third down, but an illegal formation penalty wiped out the big gain.

The Steelers rushed for a season-high 186 and average 5.2 yards per carry. But with Rudolph making his first start, the team averaged just 4.8 yards per pass.

Will Aaron Rodgers Start in Week 13 versus Bills?

Rudolph practiced with the first-team offense throughout the week before the Steelers face the Bears. Yet, pundits still considered his start surprising.

Rodgers entered Sunday questionable with a fracture in his left wrist. Rodgers practiced in limited fashion Thursday and Friday.

Tomlin explained to reporters after Sunday’s loss that Rodgers was ready to play, but that he made the “prudent” decision.

“Certainly, it wasn’t a fluid week for [Rodgers],” Tomlin said. “It was a fluid week for Mason in terms of reps and so forth. And so, I think it will be in our rearview as we move forward. I’m hopeful of that.”

Tomlin said at the beginning of his postgame press conference that he anticipates Rodgers being ready to start next Sunday against the Buffalo Bills. But when asked a specific follow-up question on Rodgers, Rudolph and Week 13, Tomlin declined to elaborate further.

“I’ll talk to you guys about next week, next week,” Tomlin said. “I’m here to analyze what just transpired.”

By all accounts, Rodgers was close to playing Sunday. So, with one more week of rest and practice repetitions, the safe assumption is Rodgers will be ready to return in Week 13.

The Steelers might have to beat the Bills to stay in a tie for first place of the AFC North. With Sunday’s loss in Chicago, the Steelers dropped into a first-place tie with the Baltimore Ravens at the top of the division.

The Ravens will face the Cincinnati Bengals on Thanksgiving night.