In a deep Steelers QB room, UCF’s John Rhys Plumlee fits in
John Rhys Plumlee can’t believe he gets to wake up every morning living his dream.
The former UCF quarterback signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers as a free agent after going undrafted last month and recently completed rookie mini-camp.
“I had a really good experience,” Plumlee told the Orlando Sentinel. “You’re drinking water through a fire hose, to say the least, but man, it was fun. I thought I had a good performance.”
Plumlee’s next step is participating in organized team activities, which include working out with the team’s veterans.
The experience has been somewhat surreal for Plumlee. He’s shared the same space with Super Bowl winners such as quarterback Russell Wilson and coach Mike Tomlin.
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“I’ve talked to some of my fellow rookies about it,” Plumlee said. “It’s really neat because, as humans, you normalize things. If you don’t, go crazy. But sitting in the same room with Russell Wilson and learning from him, listening to what he is saying about what we’re installing and telling stories about a game where this concept came up or what happened or learning from guys like [offensive coordinator] Arthur Smith and [quarterbacks coach] Tom Arthur and then learning from coach Tomlin in team meetings and watching the way he leads a program, it’s been really cool.
“But you normalize things to get through the day. I realize I got to live my dream, and then you go to sleep, wake up and do it all over again.”
According to Plumlee, the offensive systems are the biggest adjustment from college to the pros.
At UCF, the Knights featured a no-huddle system with the quarterback in the Shotgun formation. Sometimes in the NFL the quarterback is behind center.
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“We were rocking and rolling pretty quickly,” said Plumlee of the Knights under coach Gus Malzahn. “It’s just the communication from the sidelines to the huddle and then you’re getting up [to the offensive line] and playing football. It’s just a newer piece for me, and getting used to it.”
Plumlee joins a quarterbacks room in Pittsburgh that isn’t devoid of experience or talent.
The Steelers traded last year’s starter, Kenny Pickett, to the Philadelphia Eagles after signing Wilson, a 12-year veteran who played for the Seattle Seahawks (2012-21) and Denver Broncos last season. The franchise then traded for Justin Fields, a first-round pick of the Chicago Bears in 2021. Pittsburgh also signed journeyman Kyle Allen in April following stops at Carolina, Washington, Houston and Buffalo.
“We all look alike in a sense,” Plumlee said of his teammates’ physical traits. “We all play the position similarly in some aspects and have differences in other ways. It’s cool to be in a quarterback room like that. At one point [at UCF], it was me, Tommy [Castellanos] and Timmy [McClain], and we all kind of looked the same in a sense.”
While some have compared his skill set to New Orleans Saints quarterback Taysom Hill, who started as a hybrid player and was utilized more for his running skills than passing. Plumlee was converted to receiver at Ole Miss and left for UCF after his third season.
Plumlee is adamant about playing quarterback, a sentiment that the Steelers have shared with him.
“That’s what they have related to me and I’m super excited to have that opportunity,” he said.
Matt Murschel can be reached at mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com