Just How Bad Was Mitch Trubisky’s Game vs Ravens?

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mitch Trubisky had a bad game against the Baltimore Ravens last Sunday, to say the least.

Trubisky thew three interceptions, all of which were picked off at or inside the Baltimore 10-yard line, as the Steelers lost by two points to their division rival. It’s probably fair to say that Trubisky’s interceptions were the single largest factor in the Steelers’ season-crushing loss.

But outside of the team impact of the loss, how bad was Trubisky’s game? Statistically, probably not as bad as you’d think.

Even with those three interceptions, Trubisky had a 73.1 passer rating in the game, which is far from good, but is only the fifth-worst passer rating for a Steelers quarterback in a game this season. Trubisky was worse in the first half of the game against the New York Jets that got him benched and Kenny Pickett has been worse four times.

By adjusted net yards per attempt, Trubisky had a 5.37, better than two of his previous games and four of Pickett’s.

Pro Football Focus, which goes beyond the stats and grades each player, gave Trubisky a surprisingly good 67.7 for the game. That’s the fifth-best grade for a Steelers quarterback this season.

Steelers PFF QB Grades, 2022

Pickett, Indianapolis, 88.5
Trubisky, Cleveland 80.3
Trubisky, Tampa Bay, 78.8
Pickett, Atlanta, 70.1
Trubisky, Baltimore, 67.7
Pickett, New Orleans, 67.1
Pickett, NY Jets, 66.9
Pickett, Buffalo, 65.8
Pickett, Miami, 65.6
Trubisky, at Cincinnati, 62
Trubisky, New England, 61.6
Trubisky, NY Jets, 60.7
Pickett, Cincinnati, 55.9
Pickett, Eagles, 51.9
Pickett, Tampa Bay, 49.5

When you take the totality of the available quarterback statistics and you put Trubisky’s bad game against Baltimore in context with the rest of the season, it’s pretty clear that while Trubisky did cost the Steelers the game, his performance wasn’t some kind of crazy outlier. The Steelers have been getting poor quarterback play all season.

Of course, that is the reason that head coach Mike Tomlin has opened the door to Mason Rudolph starting in Week 15 against the Carolina Panthers if Kenny Pickett cannot.

Rudolph carries his own statistical baggage. His career passer rating (80.9) and adjusted net yards per attempt (5.15) are both worse than Trubisky’s (86.2 and 5.18). Both have had lagging recent indicators. While Trubisky’s recent three-pick outing looms large in the memory books, Rudolph’s last four starts with the Steelers include last year’s infamous tie with the Detroit Lions and a four-interception game against Cleveland in 2019. Ironically, Rudolph (2.9%) has a higher interception rate than Trubisky (2.5%) over the course of his career.

But it could be those interceptions that cost Trubisky at another shot at redeeming his 2022 season. Trubisky’s history shows that he is probably the better overall option, but Tomlin has already shown his impatience with the veteran quarterback once this season. He could easily decide that Rudolph deserves another shot at the starting gig.