Steelers GM: Rudolph 'certainly' part of draft's top QB group

Mason Rudolph, projected by some to be a late first-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, had to wait until the third round to hear his name called by the Pittsburgh Steelers, well after his fellow top quarterbacks came off the board in the opening round.

However, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert believes Rudolph deserved his place alongside Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, and Lamar Jackson.

"He was with the group of the top quarterbacks," Colbert said this weekend, according to Lauren Kirschman of PennLive.com. "That was a really good position. That's very unique to the draft. It usually doesn't come through with a nice group like that."

Rudolph will sit behind Ben Roethlisberger for the foreseeable future, giving him time to work on the areas of his game that likely led to his draft fall; namely, mechanical issues that limit the velocity on his pass and his throwing skills when outside the pocket.

Four quarterbacks were taken in the top 10 for the first time in NFL history, while Jackson made it five in the first round when the Baltimore Ravens traded up to No. 32 overall.

"We haven't had that much depth at the top of the draft at (quarterback) in a long time," Colbert said. "Mason was certainly a part of that group, in our opinion."