Though the Jacksonville Jaguars won their opening preseason game against the New Orleans Saints, the offense's performance left a lot to be desired.

Had it not been for undrafted rookie running back J'Mari Taylor carrying the entire offense on his back, the Jaguars never would have been able to earn their come-from-behind victory.

Backup quarterback Nick Mullens was especially bad, finishing his quarter of work by completing only three of seven passes for 33 yards and a red-zone interception. A strip-sack of Saints' QB Spencer Rattler and a shanked punt allowed Mullens and the offense to start drives at the Saints' 7- and 32-yard lines. However, Mullens could not capitalize, losing yardage on both drives and settling for field goals.

Mullens has not played very well throughout the offseason. He is not inspiring confidence that the Jaguars would be able to survive if starting QB Trevor Lawrence is forced to miss any extended time due to an injury.

Should Jacksonville count on Mullens being able to rebound? Or is it time for the team to scour the market for a potential trade to upgrade its QB2 position?

If the Jaguars do decide a trade is in their best interest, Indianapolis Colts QB Anthony Richardson is likely available. Richardson was the fourth overall pick in 2023, but has not developed as hoped and has fallen out of favor in Indy. A change of scenery could do wonders for Richardson, as could being paired with head coach Liam Coen.

If Jacksonville decides against going the Richardson route, there is another top backup quarterback who could easily be pried away from his current team.

I'm talking about Mason Rudolph of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

While most teams only carry two quarterbacks on their 53-man roster, Pittsburgh has four who are worthy of being on an NFL roster.

The Steelers have an abundance of quarterbacks, and almost certainly won't carry all four on their roster. Behind starter Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh has Rudolph, 2026 third-round pick Drew Allar, and last year's sixth-round pick Will Howard.

Rudolph is obviously the most experienced of the backups, and the Steelers know exactly what they have in him. He was drafted to be Ben Roethlisberger's successor. While that never happened, he did get a bunch of starting experience in Pittsburgh when Big Ben was injured in 2019. He also took over as starter for the final three games in 2023 and fueled the Steelers' playoff push by leading the team to three consecutive victories.

He also got an opportunity to start after signing with the Tennessee Titans in 2024, taking over for a disappointed Will Levis.

Rudolph returned to Pittsburgh before last season and would have been the starter had Aaron Rodgers not eventually signed with the team. The exact same situation with Rodgers repeated itself this year.

With the youngsters Allar and Howard, it is incredibly unlikely that Rudolph is part of Pittsburgh's future beyond this season. It is equally unlikely that the Steelers would want to risk losing Howard to another team if he were the odd man out during roster cutdowns.

Pittsburgh would absolutely listen to offers for Rudolph. Why not get something for a player who is not part of the team's future?

Rudolph is one of the most experienced and trusted backup quarterbacks in the NFL. He has plenty of starting experience, and could be trusted to keep the Jaguars' head above water if Lawrence missed any time.

For a team with high expectations like Jacksonville, having a good backup QB could be the difference between having the opportunity to go on a long playoff run and not making the playoffs at all.

One bad preseason game may not be enough to lead to the end of Mullens' tenure as Lawrence's backup, but another poor outing could force Jacksonville to look for an upgrade.

If the Jaguars do decide to go shopping for a new QB2, Mason Rudolph could be on the top of their list..