LATROBE, Pa. -- The quarterback competition in Steelers camp will be watched with intense scrutiny. It's the first time there's been even a breath of quarterback controversy since Ben Roethlisberger was drafted in 2004. Now, after an 18-year career, it's time for someone else to take the reins.
In turn, we're going to provide updates on what each quarterback is doing throughout training camp -- where they are in the pecking order and, more importantly, how they are performing.
While we will be watching and reporting this competition closely, it's important to note that Mike Tomlin was very specific in how he plans to handle this situation.
"We're not going to micromanage or over-manage this quarterback competition," Tomlin said on reporting day. "The depth chart will not rest on every throw. ... We're gonna be a little bit more steady than that. I think it's important from a leadership perspective to not over-manage it; to not be too impulsive. That's what I relayed to those guys, and our actions will continue to display that mindset."
Day 7 of training camp was the second day in pads. Here's what we saw Tuesday ...
DEPTH CHART
1. Mitch Trubisky
2. Kenny Pickett
3. Mason Rudolph
4. Chris Oladokun
The distribution of snaps remained the same as it had been on Monday, with Trubisky working with the first-team unit -- albeit without Najee Harris, Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool and Pat Freiermuth -- Pickett working with the 2s and Rudolph the third team. We still haven't had a Chris Oladokun snap in any of the team stuff.
MITCH TRUBISKY
• Trubisky came out throwing in Seven Shots today and his first pass was a back-pylon throw to to Cody White that wasn't bad ball placement. White got one foot down, but was forced out of bounds by Ahkello Witherspoon.
• The Steelers tried the inside flip to the tight end on their next play -- to Kevin Rader -- that was sniffed out by T.J. Watt for no gain.
• On third down, Trubisky made a bad decision pre-snap and forced a ball to Anthony Miller on an out that Cam Sutton had covered like a blanket in the front corner of the end zone. Those are the kind of passes that get returned for touchdowns the other way.
• On his final attempt, Trubisky fired a ball to Connor Heyward that the rookie was unable to hold onto for a touchdown, making Trubisky 0-4.
• Third down wasn't much better for Trubisky, as he want 0-4 with an interception by Damontae Kazee. Wide receivers coach Frisman Jackson was talking with Johnson, the intended receiver, after that one about the depth of his route, so it might not have necessarily been Trubisky's fault. But the pass was high. The defense was sending blitzers during this drill, making life tough on Trubisky.
• Trubisky did have a couple of better plays in first-down team drills, rolling to his left and firing a nice strike to George Pickens for about an 8-yard gain, then flipping the ball out to Anthony McFarland in the flat to his left for a nice gain. But as you can see throughout this piece, he was working with some down-the-chart depth pieces against the team's No. 1 defense.
KENNY PICKETT
• Pickett was 0-2 on his chances in Seven Shots. He did throw a touchdown to Jace Sternberger on his first attempt, but that only came after he would have been sacked. He then misfired on a back-shoulder throw to Tyler Vaughns with James Pierre in coverage.
• Pickett struggled with some blitz stuff, as well. Devin Bush would have gotten him on his first attempt as Pickett held the ball too long. He did have a nice throw to Steven Sims down the sideline in one-on-one coverage against Pierre for a long gain, but he threw the ball off his back foot instead of stepping into it.
• In first down, Pickett made a nice adjustment at the line of scrimmage on an audible when the defense overloaded the right side of the line, getting the ball to Jaylen Warren for a backside run that was a nice gain. But on his next play, he held the ball too long on play-action that would have resulted in a sack.
• In the final team period, Pickett had a completion to Zach Gentry and then did a nice job side-stepping the pass rush on third down to step up and scramble for a first down. It didn't look like he would have gone down on that one.
MASON RUDOLPH
• Rudolph's only pass in Seven Shots resulted in a touchdown for the second day in a row as he rolled immediately to his right and found Miles Boykin in the back of the end zone for a score.
• Rudolph also caught the defense napping in team run, flipping a pass to the outside for a 12-yard gain to Vaughns on the final play.
• He, too, would have been sacked in third down drills, as Tre Norwood came with a delayed blitz that caught him by surprise. He then dropped a pass in to Rader that was dropped before a screen to Mataeo Durant was blown up by Ulysees Gilbert, who sniffed it out well.
• In a later period, Rudolph made nice use of play-action and max protection to drop a tear drop in to Calvin Austin behind Linden Stephens for a long gain. It was a nice play fake and good throw.
• On the final play of practice, Rudolph looked to throw an out immediately to newcomer Javon McKinley, but McKinley didn't break out for what would have been an easy gain. Rudolph had to tuck the ball back down and waited to throw for a first down to Tyler Snead on a crossing pattern, showing nice patience and the ability to progress through his reads.
QB THOUGHTS
Rudolph continues to look the most comfortable. But he's also now working against third- and even fourth-team guys. Trubisky doesn't have much of a chance right now working with a group of very young or really second-team guys against the first defensive unit. You can afford to have one of those guys on the field during the season, but when four of the top five targets are backups, it shows in the play of the quarterback.
Pickett is making some strides but still holding the ball too long. When he just drops back and gets the ball out, he looks fine. When he starts patting the ball, that's when bad things happen.