Steelers Competition Will Get Worse for Will Howard

PITTSBURGH — Aaron Rodgers is back. The Pittsburgh Steelers got their quarterback back for another season as they look to break their playoff win drought. But with the return of the 42-year-old means the end of Will Howard’s run as the “starter,” and the timing couldn’t be worse.

People wanted Rodgers to return and for the mystery of whether or not he would to end. It’s been months of the team questioning who they’re QB1 would be, and waiting on Rodgers to decide whether or not he’d return for a final season.

While they waited, Howard was gearing up for his opportunity. If Rodgers did not return, the Steelers were going to give him a chance to earn the starting job this season. Now, they won’t, and while they’ll continue to develop him, they will now longer give him the reps with the first-team that he once would’ve gotten - and that’s as unfortunate as it can get for the second-year, sixth-round pick.

Howard could’ve worked with DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman Jr. and the rest of the starting offense during OTAs and minicamp, if Rodgers didn’t return by then. It would’ve given head coach Mike McCarthy a chance to observe him as the starter and really help where he needed it most to try and grow.

It would’ve also been the only opportunity Howard would’ve gotten to showcase himself as a potential starter this offseason. Something he needed for his future with the team.

Terrible Timing for Will Howard

With Rodgers’ return, Howard takes a back seat for the season. He becomes QB2. And he probably stays there for a while after this.

Howard was drafted to be a backup behind whoever the Steelers drafted in 2026. When the quarterback class weakened, they changed course, starting to look beyond this year’s draft and toward 2027.

When the coaching changed happened, Howard had life. McCarthy sees the potential in Howard and continues to praise that potential. If forced into the situation, he believes he could’ve made Howard into a capable starter, but also drafted Drew Allar to add another developmental piece.

In 2027, the Steelers are going to draft another quarterback - most likely. It’s their philosophy.

"It's about the quarterback room," McCarthy said after the NFL Draft. "I've always approached it that way. I learned it that way as a young coach. It's about training the whole room together. We had an opportunity to get on the field last week for two days with Mason [Rudolph]and Will [Howard], and now we add Drew. This is the goal. This is the outlook. We talked about it in my interview. Just from a philosophical standpoint, we want to have a healthy quarterback room that we're always developing. It's the most important position maybe in sports. It's very difficult. There's a lot that goes into that. We have a way of how the quarterback will be trained here. I've done it a long time. It's great to have two really young guys that I'm excited about."

Next year is about competition for the Steelers, but Howard is probably third on the list. Allar and the rookie will rank higher.

Drew Allar Becomes Next Up

Allar has a first-round arm and all the physical traits the NFL wants in a quarterback. What held him back was the mental side of things. Big moments, off-script plays, the Penn State product struggled to handle them, and it probably cost him two rounds in the NFL Draft.

If McCarthy can develop that, though, the Steelers have a quarterback with star upside. Someone who can check every box as an elite passer at the professional level. Someone who would carry more potential than his current teammate, Will Howard.

If the Steelers draft a quarterback next offseason in the early rounds of the NFL Draft, Allar and that rookie will be the fiercer competition of the three. Howard would be involved, but at some point, draft stock will come into play, and a third-round pick outweighs a sixth, and chances are next year’s pick is even higher.

It leaves almost no room for Howard’s chances, and while there was a lot of hope the former Ohio State star could earn his future this offseason, that’s all but done. Aaron Rodgers’ return means the Steelers are going to have too many names in the room for the sixth-round pick to make it, and his chances are likely all but over from here on out.

Make sure to bookmark Steelers On SI, and find our podcast All Steelers Talk on YouTube or anywhere you listen!

Add us as a preferred source on Google