Everyone wants to be No. 1. But Josh Dobbs is just fine being No. 2.
As in No. 2 in the Steelers' quarterback pecking order, which is where Dobbs finds himself after the team made the decision Saturday to keep him over longtime backup Landry Jones.
Dobbs said Monday, as the Steelers returned to the practice field for the first time since the quarterback learned he'd be staying in Pittsburgh, he's been told by offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner that he will be the primary backup to Ben Roethlisberger.
That call came minutes before the NFL's 4 p.m. deadline Saturday for all teams to trim their rosters to 53 players.
“Randy called me at 3:42,” Dobbs said. “He informed me I made it and let me know my role would change a little moving forward. He said just come with the same approach, come ready to go, ready to learn and try to get that seventh ring for the Steelers.”
A fourth-round draft pick in 2017, Dobbs had a strong preseason, posting a passer rating of 112 and throwing four touchdowns while also rushing for another.
But, he wasn't guaranteed a roster spot thanks to the presence of Jones and 2018 third-round draft pick Mason Rudolph. The Steelers ultimately decided to keep Dobbs over Jones, who had been with the team the previous five seasons.
The first call Dobbs got after hearing from Fichtner came from Jones.
"He called and congratulated me," Dobbs said of Jones. "That's the tough part of this. But I appreciate the help Landry provided me. I learned a lot from him about how to conduct yourself as a professional."
That is the difficult part of cutdown day. It was especially tough for veteran guard Ramon Foster. His locker has been next to Jones's the past five years. But he, like Dobbs, played his college football at the University of Tennessee.
“I’m happy and sad,” said Foster. “I know Landry will be fine. I absolutely know that. He’s a guy that he got calls from other teams last year to try to pick him up, so I’m not worried about him having a job. But, his presence not being here is one thing. We will miss him in a lot of different ways. He’s a spiritual leader on our team. He’s a guy who keeps that aspect tight, so we’re going to pick up that slack in that mode.
“But Dobbs is my guy, too. I can’t bash one. I love them both. I was hoping we could keep four.”
That, however, wasn't meant to be.
Roethlisberger had expressed in training camp how comfortable he had become with Jones on the sideline, serving as an extra pair of eyes.
Now, those eyes will belong to Dobbs. He hopes to be up to the task.
"Always ready to go, but you are also helping Ben however he needs,” Dobbs said. “Be a resource for him, and any way I can help him improve and find that extra nugget to get us a win on Sundays, I am going to do it.”