Will Howard Returning to Steelers?

PITTSBURGH -- Rookie quarterback Will Howard is waiting for his chance to make an impact with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The team's recent sixth-round pick suffered a fractured finger on his throwing hand during training camp, and it landed him on the Injured Reserve to begin the regular season.

In his place, the Steelers kept veteran mobile quarterback Skylar Thompson, but the door is now open for Howard to return to the 53-man roster. Thompson suffered a hamstring injury recently and popped up on the team's final injury report for their Week 1 matchup against the New York Jets. Most recently, the team placed Thompson on Injured Reserve, meaning he will miss the next four games at minimum.

Injuries are never a welcome occurrence, but there is an obvious silver lining to Thompson’s injury. While it is a troubling development for the 28-year-old QB, who was flying high off a sterling preseason performance, the Steelers now have an easy excuse to bring Howard back. It comes at the cost of Thompson in 2025, but the only way Howard can secure a 53-man roster spot during the regular season just happened. The team can shut Thompson down for the season and activate Howard after he misses his fourth game.

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Will Howard — Pittsburgh Steelers

This is Not Little League Football

Head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters that he coaches to win the game, not to monitor snap counts or manage personnel issues with his decisions. That’s how he justified not playing inside linebacker Cole Holcomb during the season opener. It’s also something he reiterated when it came to Howard’s development, making it clear that getting the rookie up to speed took a backseat to the team's number one priority of winning.

Which is an understandable position for Tomlin to take. The longest-tenured coach in the NFL has narrowed his sights on a Vince Lombardi Trophy. Not concering himself too much with the third-string quarterback battle in the regular season make sense.

Now, that decision has been removed entirely from Tomlin's hands. Thompson is hurt and will miss at least the next four games, ineligible to return until their Week 7 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals. Howard is eligible to return for Week 6 against the Cleveland Browns, which could be the final blow for Thompson's 53-man roster hopes.

The Steelers see big things in Will Howard, but his impact on the franchise won't come until 2026 at the earliest, if it ever happens. With a Super Bowl on their radar, Howard now has a direct lane to the 53-man roster and an up-close view of Aaron Rodgers conducting the offense for the rest of the season.

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