Update (2:09 PM): The Steelers have officially inked Dwayne Haskins to a one-year contract, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Haskins is far from the first first-round QB to be brought in by Kevin Colbert.
Our original report is below.
The Pittsburgh Steelers currently only have two quarterbacks under contract for the 2021 season and they might could have a third one in the coming days and one that was a former first-round selection at that.
According Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network on Thursday, former Washington Football Team quarterback Dwayne Haskins has a visit scheduled with the Steelers today. The free agent also recently visited the Carolina Panthers, per the report.
Washington released Haskins, the 2019 first-round pick out of Ohio State, on Dec. 28, less than 24 hours after he committed three turnovers in a loss to the Panthers and he was found in violation of pandemic protocols after being caught partying with several people without a mask. Haskins was fined $40,000 by Washington and lost his captaincy as a result of that incident.
Haskins struggled mightily with Washington during the 2020 season, completing just 61% of his passes with five touchdowns and seven interceptions. In his 16 career NFL starts, Haskins has just 12 touchdown passes and 14 interceptions. After he was waived by Washington, Haskins easily cleared waivers.
Washington clearly over-drafted Haskins, who made all of 14 starts during his college career at Ohio State. With Washington, Haskins had 2,804 passing yards and a 3-10 record as a starter. In a word, he was awful.
“Sometimes you have to hit rock bottom before you can dig your way back out of it,” Washington head coach Ron Rivera said on Dec. 28 after the team released Haskins. “I hope he learns from these experiences. Hopefully, they’ll make him stronger and they’ll help him and, hopefully, when he gets his next opportunity, he’ll make the best of it.”
Should the Steelers ultimately sign Haskins to a contract, one would think it would be for the minimum and no guaranteed money.
Currently, Ben Roethlisberger and Mason Rudolph are the only two quarterbacks under contract with the Steelers for the 2021 season.
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