Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Steelers find no luck at QB with Duck, Rudolph

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The Pittsburgh Steelers came to the Meadowlands hoping to get their playoff wings.

Instead, Duck got plucked.

And their backup left with a bum shoulder.

The New York Jets intercepted Devlin “Duck” Hodges twice in the first half, forcing Mike Tomlin to replace him with Mason Rudolph at quarterback.

Initially, it worked wonders — just as it had when Rudolph faltered in Cincinnati and Hodges rallied the Steelers — before Rudolph injured his left shoulder and the Duck had to return.

This time, there would be no heroics.

The Steelers had their shots. Hodges threw deep to James Washington in the end zone but it was broken up by free safety Marcus Maye.

Hodges dropped the snap on fourth down, then tossed a prayer off his back foot that went just over the outstretched arms of JuJu Smith-Schuster, and the Jets prevailed, 16-10.

Now, the Steelers (8-7) not only need to beat Baltimore in the season finale but also will require some assistance or could suffer the same fate as last season.

Ten spot

The Jets went to Le’Veon Bell early and often on the opening drive but the big plays involved a flag, a fumble recovery and a pass.

Steelers free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick drew a pass interference penalty on a third-and-3 throw to Robby Anderson, which was followed by a 17-yard pass to Ty Montgomery to the Steelers 24.

Sam Darnold fumbled but receiver Jamison Crowder recovered. On the next play, Darnold found Anderson in the back of the end zone and dropped a perfectly placed pass between strong safety Terrell Edmunds and cornerback Joe Haden to give the Jets a 7-0 lead.

The Steelers’ first possession ended when Hodges was intercepted by outside linebacker Tarell Basham, and the next one saw them go three-and-out.

The Jets converted one third-and-2 when Montgomery ran for 7 yards, but Bell was stopped short on another on the first play of the second quarter.

But Sam Ficken converted a 54-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead. That was a quite a hole for Hodges to dig out, and the defense wasn’t helping his cause.

Wounded Duck

The Steelers started their next drive with an 18-yard pass to tight end Nick Vannett, followed by a 12-yard run by James Conner to the Jets 45.

They got another big play when Jets cornerback Arthur Maulet was called for a horse-collar tackle on Washington, a 15-yard penalty.

But on third-and-3, Hodges’ pass intended for Jaylen Samuels was intercepted in the end zone by free safety Marcus Maye, who leaped in front of Samuels.

Not only was it underthrown but the Steelers had another receiver in the vicinity, which drew two more defenders. That’s the same kind of pass plays that killed the Steelers against the Buffalo Bills.

It was the fourth interception in five drives for Hodges, with the other resulting in a punt.

It was time for Duck to get the hook.

Rudolph to rescue

When Hodges replaced Rudolph in the second half at Cincinnati, he inherited a 7-3 deficit but threw a 79-yard touchdown to Washington on the third play.

Rudolph also connected with Washington his third play – a 13-yard gain on third-and-12 for a first down – but the drive stalled when he scrambled for 5 yards on a third-and-11.

The second drive fared better, as Rudolph hit Washington for a 13-yard gain and stayed in the pocket to Samuels for a 27-yarder to the Jets’ 30. But his next pass was behind Smith-Schuster, and Rudolph was sacked by inside linebacker Neville Hewitt for a 9-yard loss.

After an 9-yard pass to Washington, the Steelers got on the scoreboard when Chris Boswell kicked a 49-yard field goal to cut it to 10-3 with 1:18 left in the first half.

Then T.J. Watt changed everything.

The Pro Bowl outside linebacker got a strip-sack of Darnold and recovered the fumble at the Jets’ 41, putting the Steelers in scoring position.

But could they score?

Like clockwork

The Steelers started the drive with 28 seconds remaining, and were forced to use their final timeout after Samuels ran for 6 yards on a draw.

Samuels ran again, this time for 1 yard, but he got out of bounds to stop the clock at 14 seconds. A third-and-3 throw down the right sideline to Washington drew a penalty on the Jets, but it was for illegal contact before the throw by Maulet instead of pass interference.

That left 9 seconds on the clock for the Steelers. The safe move would be to take the points on a Boswell 47-yard field goal and go into halftime trailing, 10-6.

The Steelers took a gamble.

It paid off handsomely when Diontae Johnson beat Bless Austin in single coverage, and Rudolph dropped a pass over his right shoulder for a 29-yard touchdown.

The Steelers went into halftime with the game tied at 10-10 and momentum clearly on their side.

Return of Quack

Rudolph outperformed Darnold in the first half, completing 9 of 12 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown in the second quarter.

The Jets quarterback was 11 of 16 for 97 yards and a touchdown in the first half but led them on a 63-yard scoring drive early in the third quarter capped by Ficken’s 37-yard field goal for a 13-10 lead.

That’s when the Steelers encountered injuries.

They lost James Conner to a thigh injury, then center Maurkice Pouncey to a left knee injury. B.J. Finney replaced Pouncey, but Rudolph stumbled on their first exchange, missed the handoff and took a 5-yard loss.

Rudolph squeezed a 14-yard pass to Smith-Schuster on a third-and-9 but the Steelers ultimately were forced to punt.

When they got the ball back in the fourth quarter, Rudolph was out with a left shoulder injury and Hodges was forced to return. But he was blindsided by Henry Anderson for a 9-yard loss, then fumbled a shotgun snap for an 8-yard loss and the Steelers punted once again.

That’s when Darnold shined, throwing a 15-yard pass to Vycint Smith and a 20-yarder to Crowder to put the Jets in Steelers’ territory. The drive stalled but Ficken’s 42-yard field goal gave them a 16-10 lead with 3:11 left.

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