Tim Benz: When it came to Mitch Trubisky's thud, Steelers (and many fans) refused to see it coming

The Mitch Trubisky signing will go down as one big swing and a miss for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

An air ball. A shanked drive. A gutter ball. A foot fault. Whatever negative sports mixed metaphor that you prefer.

Fortunately, the financial ramifications aren’t all that vast. While I’m sure Art Rooney II could think of better ways that he could’ve spent $14 million in actual dollars that were eventually paid to Trubisky over the two years he was a Steeler, that’s what veteran quarterbacks cost.

Plus, it’s not like Trubisky’s cap hits during those two years prevented the Steelers from signing anyone else they otherwise would have. Nor will they be blocked from doing so this year because of the $4.6 million in dead money that Trubisky will count against the cap in 2024.

And, honestly, the on-field failures weren’t really as bad as I’m sure history will portray them to have been. Granted, Trubisky was only 3-9 in games he started or played a significant relief role for the Steelers. But it’s not like the organizational mediocrity over the last two seasons should be placed squarely at his feet.

There were plenty of other players and coaches that contributed to those shortcomings as well.

So, let’s not act like the Trubisky signing was some sort of salary cap or depth chart-altering calamity. It wasn’t. In Steelers history, it’ll go down as a blip, largely because the franchise diluted his impact before Trubisky even played a game by drafting Kenny Pickett six weeks following Trubisky’s arrival.

No, the negative fallout of the Trubisky deal is more about the ongoing quest to fill the void left by Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement and the trust factor that Steelers fans should have in this franchise’s ability to do that effectively.

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Or, maybe better said, the lack of that trust.

Drafting Mason Rudolph in 2018 was probably taking a quarterback a round too high and a year too early. Trubisky was completely misevaluated in 2022, and it’s starting to look like Pickett was too.

Now, it feels like the Steelers are getting ready to let Rudolph walk in free agency immediately after he finally showed signs of figuring out what it takes to be an NFL quarterback.

You can argue they’re already 0 for 3 trying to replace Big Ben.

Frankly, they might have missed on Rudolph twice. Once when they drafted him, and now if they let him go.

On a different level, I’m always going to remember the Trubisky signing as a low-water mark for fan-media interaction, too. None of this is Trubisky’s fault. It was just the public’s reaction to his signing that will always leave a sour taste in my mouth.

The Terrible Towel-waving propaganda that was spun about Trubisky was comical to me. It was advanced on social media platforms, sports talk radio, in print, and in blogs from fans, some media members, and general Steelers zealots.

The Steelers were clearly just trying to throw numbers at the QB problem in hopes that it worked out between Rudolph, Trubisky and a future draft choice. They “committed to” Trubisky while we all knew they were aiming to get a QB in the first round of the draft if possible. So they were only half-in on him in the first place.

The quickness with which Trubisky was benched for Pickett underscored that.

Yet the Black-and-Gold-friendly talking points in March 2022 were that Trubisky was still a player with upside that the Bears broke and the Steelers would fix after he sat on the bench for a year in Buffalo “learning” behind Josh Allen.

Meanwhile, in Pittsburgh, we had all just spent the previous season calling Matt Canada a moron for 17 games because the offense in Roethlisberger’s final year stunk.

But Canada was going to be the guy to “fix” Trubisky after those dumb Bears ruined him. No one ever reconciled that contradiction for me.

Furthermore, what was Trubisky really going to learn from watching Allen? Learn how to be three inches taller, twenty pounds heavier, a better runner and to have a stronger arm. He was supposed to “learn” that?

Trubisky wasn’t accurate. He wasn’t particularly adept at dissecting defenses, many of his numbers were similar to Rudolph’s, and a lousy franchise in Chicago thought it could do better.

Yet anytime I pointed these things out, I was labeled a “hater,” a “contrarian,” and a “clickbait specialist.”

Gee, I just thought I was someone who had done their homework and had an opinion. But in sports media these days, that’s not the job anymore, I guess. The longer I’m in it, the more I get the feeling that the job is to tell the fans what they want to hear.

Many of you just wanted to hear that Trubisky was a “shrewd” signing. That’s the word I kept hearing: “shrewd.”

Go back and read the responses I got after being critical of the Trubisky acquisition. I was literally getting people telling me he was the “best QB in the division” and that Trubisky in Pittsburgh was going to wind up being better than Lamar Jackson in Baltimore. I also had a guy tell me signing Trubisky “was a classic Steeler move.”

Sadly, that dude is being proven exactly right. Strangely, I think he meant that as a compliment.

Don’t worry, Steelers fans. If history is any guide and the years post Big Ben are anything like the two decades in between Roethlisberger’s draft day and Terry Bradshaw’s retirement, we’ll have plenty of guys just like Trubisky to discuss. The next one that comes along, I’ll just tell you what you want to hear.

Even if I really think he’ll be another foul ball.

Listen: Tim Benz and Chris Adamski discuss the state of the Steelers QB situation, the tackle position, and the decision to cut Pressley Harvin III