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The Pittsburgh Steelers have been a remarkably stable organization in the Super Bowl era. However, they have had a few quarterback controversies over the years like when Joe Gilliam temporarily unseated Terry Bradshaw, Kordell Stewart’s multiple runs as a starter for the Steelers, and the epic battle between Mason Rudolph and Devlin “Duck” Hodges during the 2019 season after Ben Roethlisberger sustained a season-ending elbow injury.
Samford Sports
Hodges was not highly recruited out of Mortimer Jordan High School in Kimberly, Alabama. He was best known at the time for being the 2009 Junior World Duck Calling Champion which earned him the nickname of “Duck.” He elected to attend nearby Samford, an FCS school in Alabama, and won the starting job his freshman year and never relinquished it during a decorated college career. He came 17 yards short in his junior season of throwing for 4,000 yards for three consecutive years. Hodges set the all-time FCS record for passing yards with 14,584, passing Steve McNair. He was named the Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year three years in a row. He was a Walter Payton Award finalist in 2017 and won the award after his senior season in 2018.
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
In 2019, Pittsburgh brought in Hodges as an undrafted free agent as their 4th quarterback in training camp to compete for the third quarterback slot. He was not expected to make the team, but he did make a positive impression and the team elected to keep him as a member of the practice squad when they decided to just go with Roethlisberger and Rudolph on the active roster. Roethlisberger had occasionally missed games in his career up to this point but in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks, disaster struck and he was lost for the season.
Hodges was promoted as the backup from the practice squad on September 16, 2019. Rudolph was shaky in his first three starts and in his 3rd start, Rudolph was injured and Hodges was thrust into the game. In relief, he went 7 for 9 for 68 yards and scrambled for an additional 20 yards. He did not turn the ball over and led the Steelers into overtime against Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens. A JuJu Smith-Schuster fumble in overtime gave the Ravens great field position and they lost on a Justin Tucker field goal. When asked about why go to Hodges, Steelers head coach, Mike Tomlin responded,
Hodges was named the starter against the Los Angeles Chargers the next week and won the game without impressive stats, but he did throw his first professional touchdown pass. He returned to the bench the next week against the Miami Dolphins and remained the backup until the infamous Monday Night game in Cleveland the Steelers lost on November 14th, 2019. After the controversial game, Tomlin named Hodges the starter against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 12 for the 5-5 Steelers.
Hodges led the Steelers to three consecutive victories over the Bengals, Cleveland in the rematch, and the Arizona Cardinals with solid, but not spectacular play. In Week 15, he struggled against the Buffalo Bills and after the tough loss, the Steelers headed to New York with a chance to cement the inside track for the playoffs with a win against the New York Jets.
Pittsburgh was the better team that year, but not that day as Hodges struggled mightily and was pulled for Rudolph in the 2nd quarter where he led the Steelers back to a 10-10 tie, but could do nothing in the 2nd half as they lost and fell to 8-7. With one game remaining in the season, the Steelers went with Hodges against the Ravens, but he performed miserably as the Steelers were blown out and swept by the Ravens for the first time since 2015.
He appeared in eight games for the Steelers, and they were 4-4 in those games. His 3-game winning streak gave Steeler Nation hope they could somehow manage the playoffs after an 0-3 start, but they fell short of the postseason. Hodges was up and down and threw for just 1,063 yards on 100 completions. He finished with 5 touchdown passes to 8 interceptions.
Photo Scott Grant
When Roethlisberger returned in 2020, Hodges was again demoted to the practice squad. After the season, he signed a contract with the Los Angeles Rams, but was cut in August of 2021. Hodges elected to go north to the CFL where he was signed by the Ottowa Redblacks. He was the backup quarterback for Ottawa most of the year, but did get a start on November 6th for the 2-10 team. He did not play well in what ultimately was his final career start.
Devlin “Duck” Hodges will not be remembered for his NFL career by most fans outside of Steeler Nation. But for a few weeks in 2019, he was our quarterback, and we all were enthralled by the “what if” he was the future in Pittsburgh possibility. It would have been an epic saga if it happened, but it was as short as a duck call. Somehow, I think Hodges when he looks back will be okay with that. It is more than most undrafted FCS quarterbacks get.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Will you miss him? Please comment below or follow me on Twitter @thebubbasq.
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
The Legend of the Duck Begins
Samford Sports
Hodges was not highly recruited out of Mortimer Jordan High School in Kimberly, Alabama. He was best known at the time for being the 2009 Junior World Duck Calling Champion which earned him the nickname of “Duck.” He elected to attend nearby Samford, an FCS school in Alabama, and won the starting job his freshman year and never relinquished it during a decorated college career. He came 17 yards short in his junior season of throwing for 4,000 yards for three consecutive years. Hodges set the all-time FCS record for passing yards with 14,584, passing Steve McNair. He was named the Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year three years in a row. He was a Walter Payton Award finalist in 2017 and won the award after his senior season in 2018.
NFL Career
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
In 2019, Pittsburgh brought in Hodges as an undrafted free agent as their 4th quarterback in training camp to compete for the third quarterback slot. He was not expected to make the team, but he did make a positive impression and the team elected to keep him as a member of the practice squad when they decided to just go with Roethlisberger and Rudolph on the active roster. Roethlisberger had occasionally missed games in his career up to this point but in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks, disaster struck and he was lost for the season.
Hodges was promoted as the backup from the practice squad on September 16, 2019. Rudolph was shaky in his first three starts and in his 3rd start, Rudolph was injured and Hodges was thrust into the game. In relief, he went 7 for 9 for 68 yards and scrambled for an additional 20 yards. He did not turn the ball over and led the Steelers into overtime against Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens. A JuJu Smith-Schuster fumble in overtime gave the Ravens great field position and they lost on a Justin Tucker field goal. When asked about why go to Hodges, Steelers head coach, Mike Tomlin responded,
Hodges was named the starter against the Los Angeles Chargers the next week and won the game without impressive stats, but he did throw his first professional touchdown pass. He returned to the bench the next week against the Miami Dolphins and remained the backup until the infamous Monday Night game in Cleveland the Steelers lost on November 14th, 2019. After the controversial game, Tomlin named Hodges the starter against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 12 for the 5-5 Steelers.
Hodges led the Steelers to three consecutive victories over the Bengals, Cleveland in the rematch, and the Arizona Cardinals with solid, but not spectacular play. In Week 15, he struggled against the Buffalo Bills and after the tough loss, the Steelers headed to New York with a chance to cement the inside track for the playoffs with a win against the New York Jets.
Pittsburgh was the better team that year, but not that day as Hodges struggled mightily and was pulled for Rudolph in the 2nd quarter where he led the Steelers back to a 10-10 tie, but could do nothing in the 2nd half as they lost and fell to 8-7. With one game remaining in the season, the Steelers went with Hodges against the Ravens, but he performed miserably as the Steelers were blown out and swept by the Ravens for the first time since 2015.
He appeared in eight games for the Steelers, and they were 4-4 in those games. His 3-game winning streak gave Steeler Nation hope they could somehow manage the playoffs after an 0-3 start, but they fell short of the postseason. Hodges was up and down and threw for just 1,063 yards on 100 completions. He finished with 5 touchdown passes to 8 interceptions.
Duck Hodges Thanks Steelers Nation
The End of the Road
Photo Scott Grant
When Roethlisberger returned in 2020, Hodges was again demoted to the practice squad. After the season, he signed a contract with the Los Angeles Rams, but was cut in August of 2021. Hodges elected to go north to the CFL where he was signed by the Ottowa Redblacks. He was the backup quarterback for Ottawa most of the year, but did get a start on November 6th for the 2-10 team. He did not play well in what ultimately was his final career start.
Devlin “Duck” Hodges will not be remembered for his NFL career by most fans outside of Steeler Nation. But for a few weeks in 2019, he was our quarterback, and we all were enthralled by the “what if” he was the future in Pittsburgh possibility. It would have been an epic saga if it happened, but it was as short as a duck call. Somehow, I think Hodges when he looks back will be okay with that. It is more than most undrafted FCS quarterbacks get.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Will you miss him? Please comment below or follow me on Twitter @thebubbasq.
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
?
In all seriousness, he made me think of Bubby Brister for some reason, liked him but always thought he wasn't quite a starter. 
