Steelers' Mike Tomlin not contemplating a short leash for Devlin Hodges vs. Jets

After throwing a career-worst four interceptions — matching his season total — against Cleveland in November, Mason Rudolph played one series into the second half of his next start before he was benched with the Pittsburgh Steelers trailing at Cincinnati.

After throwing a career-high four interceptions — double his season total — on Sunday night against Buffalo, Devlin Hodges will start at quarterback when the Steelers take to the road to face an opponent with a losing record.

Coach Mike Tomlin, naturally, was asked Tuesday at his weekly news conference whether he will have the same kind of short leash with Hodges against the 5-9 New York Jets that he did a month ago with Rudolph against the previously winless Cincinnati Bengals.

“I don’t anticipate or plan for failure,” Tomlin said after announcing Hodges will make his fifth start and fourth in a row Sunday.

Tomlin expressed confidence Hodges can avoid the type of setbacks that landed Rudolph on the bench when he led the Steelers to just three points on six drives Nov. 24 against the Bengals. The performance came on the heels of Rudolph’s worst start, which ended with his late-game fight with Cleveland’s Myles Garrett.

“I anticipate him doing great,” Tomlin said about Hodges. “I anticipate him responding to the challenge. I anticipate him doing a great job of moving our offense and taking care of the ball. I hadn’t pondered the possibility of (having a short leash), and I won’t.

“I’ll cross that bridge if and when I come to it.”

Hodges, the first undrafted quarterback to win his first three starts in a nonstrike season in the Super Bowl era, is 3-1 as a starter. Rudolph is 5-3.

The Steelers had their three-game winning streak snapped in a 17-10 loss to the Bills, a game in which Hodges was intercepted three times in the second half. The first second-half pick put the Bills in position to kick a tying field goal, and the final two came inside the two-minute warning when Hodges was trying to guide the Steelers back from a seven-point deficit. Both interceptions were thrown in the end zone.

Hodges finished with 23 completions in 38 attempts for 202 yards and a touchdown. He also was sacked four times and had a 43.9 passer rating.

“I look forward to giving him an opportunity to rebound,” Tomlin said. “I think it’s reasonable to expect growth from young players as they get exposure. Sometimes that exposure can be negative exposure like the last game, but exposure nonetheless is a tool for growth, particularly at the quarterback position.”

Hodges’ statistics against Buffalo were comparable to Rudolph’s start at Cleveland that ended in a 21-7 loss: 23 completions in 44 attempts for 221 yards, four sacks and a 36.3 rating.

Rudolph completed 8 of 16 passes for 85 yards with an interception and a 39.8 rating against Cincinnati before Tomlin made the switch. Hodges relieved and guided the Steelers to a 16-10 victory.

“We’ve seen similar circumstances this year,” Tomlin said. “Mason had a tough game on the road at Cleveland. We gave him an opportunity to respond to that performance. We’ll proceed with Duck and give him an opportunity to respond. There needs to be growth and development from that.”

Hodges said Sunday he was prepared to abide by Tomlin’s decision in the event Rudolph replaced him, but he was hopeful of getting another chance to start, particularly with the Steelers trying to get into the playoffs as the AFC’s No. 6 seed.

“I think after the first loss, how you respond is going to define who I am,” Hodges said. “I mean, yeah, I’m disappointed right now, but in a couple days, I’m still going to be who I am. I’m still going to be confident, still going to know that I can get the job one.”