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Good thing this Steelers fan brought both his duck and reindeer masks to the game

Pittsburgh Steelers fans wave Terrible Towels during the second half of a game against the New York Jets on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
Pittsburgh Steelers fans wave Terrible Towels during the second half of a game against the New York Jets on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
(Sarah Stier / Getty Images)
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Jake Tovey came prepared.

The lifelong Pittsburgh Steelers fan brought two team jerseys with him to see his team play the New York Jets on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

He also brought two rubber masks. Apparently that’s his thing.

Tovey, 25, wore a No. 6 Devlin Hodges jersey and a duck mask in honor of the Steelers quarterback who goes by the name “Duck.”

But Hodges has been struggling of late, so Tovey also brought the No. 2 jersey of quarterback Mason Rudolph, along with a mask of the famous red-nosed reindeer, with him just in case the Steelers made a switch.

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And after Hodges had two passes intercepted in the first half, the team did just that. So, Tovey made a switch of his own, with his cousin capturing the maneuver on video for all of social media to enjoy.

But the work of a team fanatic is never done. Rudolph injured his shoulder during the third quarter, forcing the Steelers to re-insert Hodges. So, Tovey went back to the jersey and mask he had started out wearing. No video of the wardrobe change this time, though.

“Yeah, I wasn’t trying to get as much attention the second time around,” Tovey told Sean Gentille of the Athletic.

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In previous seasons, Tovey said he wore the No. 84 jersey of former Steelers receiver Antonio Brown with a goat (as in, G.O.A.T.) mask.

Tovey, a former Pitt student and swimmer, brought both the duck and deer outfits with him to the Steelers’ previous two home games, and his preparation paid off during Sunday’s road trip. He told Gentille he did not own the jersey for the other quarterback on the Steelers’ depth chart, Paxton Lynch.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh announces that quarterback Lamar Jackson and several others will not take part in Sunday’s game against the Steelers.

Dec. 23, 2019

“I think that’s where I’ll draw the line,” Tovey said.

But with Rudolph’s health status in question and Hodges on shaky ground, Tovey admitted he might reconsider if the Steelers got into the playoffs.

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“If [Lynch] was announced starter for a playoff game,” he said, “I’d have to figure something out.”

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