PITTSBURGH (AP) — For a guy who’s played in all of 18 games across six seasons, Mason Rudolph has been through a lot.

Like, a lot a lot.

A franchise quarterback who didn’t exactly welcome him to the Pittsburgh Steelers with open arms after the club selected Rudolph in the third round of the 2018 draft. Being caught in the middle of an ugly helmet-swinging incident with Cleveland’s Myles Garrett in 2019 that remains one of the darkest chapters in recent NFL history.

Getting benched for an undrafted rookie free agent. Finishing a distant third in a three-man race to be Ben Roethlisberger’s replacement after Roethlisberger retired two years ago.

There have been indignities both large (Garrett alleged Rudolph’s use of a racial slur sparked the brawl with the Browns, a charge of which there remains no proof) and small (the team had to re-release the depth chart ahead of the 2022 season opener when Rudolph was mistakenly listed as the backup behind Mitch Trubisky when the role had actually been given to Pickett).

Yet through it all, Rudolph has kept coming to work. Kept his head down. Kept trying to take every mental rep possible when the physical ones were hard to come by, even when the weeks would pass and he would find himself either inactive or — for most of this season — on the sideline as the emergency quarterback well aware the odds of actually getting in the game were virtually nonexistent.

Yes, there were plenty of times when Rudolph wondered if he was really “earning” his paycheck, a common thought for guys buried on the depth chart, no matter their position.

That won’t be an issue on Saturday against Cincinnati when the Steelers (7-7) will likely place their playoff fate in the hands of a player who has hung in there when so many would not.

If Pickett’s surgically repaired right ankle isn’t ready and with the offense in need of something — anything at this point — to provide a spark, Rudolph will make his first start in more than two years, an opportunity that is a testament to Rudolph’s relentless professionalism and Pittsburgh’s scattershot season.

“He’s tough-minded,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “He’s got a lot of confidence in himself. He’s a competitor.”

He’s had to be.

Rudolph went 5-3 as a starter in 2019 while Roethlisberger recovered from right elbow surgery, throwing for 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions but struggled with consistency. Tomlin sat him in favor of Devlin “Duck” Hodges at one point and his return to the lineup included his now infamous run-in with Garrett.

“I think about some of the things that happened in 19 and, uh, it’s quite a lot,” Rudolph said. “But I’m grateful for that.”