Steelers conclude preseason with loss to Carolina Panthers
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – To nobody’s surprise, the Pittsburgh Steelers put their starters on ice and their rookies on display Thursday night in the preseason finale at Bank of America Stadium.
And after the junior varsity dropped a 25-19 decision to the Carolina Panthers, the Steelers could begin focusing on the regular-season opener Sept. 8 at New England. They finished the preseason with a 3-1 record.
“Largely, it has been a good preseason in terms of guys getting an opportunity and providing some clarity, working and competing,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “We’ll proceed with the necessary process. We understand what that is.”
The next order of business will be cutting the roster to 53 players by Saturday at 4 p.m.
On Monday, Mason Rudolph and Josh Dobbs will learn which quarterback has earned the right to back up starter Ben Roethlisberger.
Rudolph took a step toward winning the job by completing 7 of 11 passes for 125 yards and one touchdown in less than half a quarter of work Thursday. Josh Dobb started and completed 3 of 5 passes for 21 yards.
Rudolph finished the preseason with 28 completions in 43 attempts for 368 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. Dobbs was 18 of 33 for 280 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
“As a second-year guy, as we’ve asked all second-year guys, I think he’s taken a significant step not only in consistency and production but in awareness and communication,” Tomlin said about Rudolph.
The Steelers led 16-10 at halftime, but the Panthers scored 15 points in the fourth quarter on a pair of Taylor Heinicke touchdown passes.
The Steelers kept more than two dozen starters and other valued backups on the sideline for the entire game.
No offensive or defensive starter was in uniform, with the exception of first-round pick Devin Bush at inside linebacker. Other members of the draft class to start against the Panthers were defensive lineman Isaiah Buggs, outside linebacker Sutton Smith, running back Benny Snell and tight end Zach Gentry. Wide receiver Diontae Johnson, cornerback Justin Layne, linebacker Ulysees Gilbert III and tackle Derwin Gray also saw significant playing time.
“More than anything, I wanted to see guys leaning at the tape,” Tomlin said. “It’s been a long process, a tough process in a lot of ways for young people, and I didn’t want to see guys limp across the finish line. I wanted to see them lean in, I wanted to see tremendous effort and growth.”
It’s safe to say Tomlin was satisfied with Bush’s effort and growth. He had six tackles in a quarter and half of action. Bush is expected to play significantly, if not start, at inside linebacker when the Steelers open against the Patriots.
“I’m ready to get rolling, ready to play when it counts,” Bush said.
Undrafted free agent Tuzar Skipper, signed out of a rookie tryout, continued his push to make the roster with two sacks. He finished the preseason with five, getting at least one in every game.
Dobbs started and played two series and 10 plays. The trouble was, the Panthers controlled the time of possession, and the Steelers’ third series didn’t occur until 6:36 left in the second quarter. Rudolph was scheduled to finish out the half, so Tomlin switched quarterbacks.
“You can’t always control that,” Dobbs said. “You always wish you could get more plays.”
Thanks to a late interception by cornerback Cam Sutton, Rudolph squeezed a third series into his alloted time.
Rudolph threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Johnny Holton with nine seconds left in the half to snap a 10-10 tie. He also had a 44-yard completion to Holton on the previous series, which set up Matthew Wright’s 49-yard field goal.
“We did a good job moving the ball,” Rudolph said. “I had great protection all night. The turnover gave us second life.”
On Carolina’s first series, two members of the draft class made contributions. Smith deflected a pass on third down, and Gilbert blocked Joey Slye’s 48-yard field-goal attempt.
Jayrone Elliott, signed one week earlier, subbed in for Smith at outside linebacker on the next series and made an immediate impact. Former West Virginia quarterback Will Grier led a drive to the Steelers 5. On second down, Grier dropped back but nobody picked up Elliott blitzing from the left side.
Elliott, who spent 38 games with the Green Bay Packers from 2014-16 and one with Dallas in 2017, knocked the ball out of Grier’s hands at the 9, picked it up at the 12 and ran unimpeded down the right sideline for an 88-yard touchdown.
Nobody could get a hand on Slye’s 59-yard attempt with 12:45 left in the second quarter, and he put it through the uprights to cut the Steelers’ lead to 7-3.
Wright, the undrafted free agent who is trying to unseat veteran Chris Boswell, handled the kicking duties and missed his first field-goal attempt, a 47-yarder, wide right with 1:55 left before intermission.
The teams combined for three more scores before the half ended.
Wright atoned by making a 49-yarder with 29 seconds left in the half, and he converted from 42 yards late in the fourth quarter.
Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.