The Pittsburgh Steelers are not depending upon Will Howard developing into their franchise quarterback, but he does fit their profile. He has a lot of games under his belt, played in a big program, and he won. On top of that, he is a bigger body type with a deep ball, even with not the biggest arm. In the sixth round, it’s hard to pass up the opportunity to see what’s there.
“I think that it was a great value pick”, ESPN reporter Brooke Pryor said of the Steelers drafting Howard in the sixth round on the Bishop and Friends podcast. “That’s a credit to the organization for being patient and waiting until the right time to get a quarterback to maximize the value of that pick”.
Many thought the team might draft Shedeur Sanders or Jaxson Dart in the first round. When Sanders slid, they thought the team would draft him in the third round—and then the fourth round. The Steelers did not, of course, settling on their quarterback with the selection of Howard two rounds later. And he offers more than just value relative to draft position, Pryor says.
“Will Howard checks a lot of boxes” for the Steelers, she argued. “They like to get guys from big, power conferences, from national championship teams. Obviously, he checks that box. To me, he really fits the mold as far as stature and somewhat similar playing style to Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph”.
Even Ben Roethlisberger was in favor of it, noting some have called him Ben 2.0. On his podcast, the former Steelers quarterback offered Howard some advice as he enters the NFL.
More realistically, of course, he probably settles into a backup role. The percentage of quarterbacks drafted in the sixth round who develop into starters is rather low. But the Steelers would settle for a long-term quality backup if they can get that out of Howard.
And if that is to be his role, then he is wired for it. Howard “feels like a very low-drama guy”, Pryor said. “He’s what you want in a backup, or in a developing-type quarterback. He’s not gonna command all of the attention and be a sideshow”.
Regardless of the outcome, many seem to believe the Steelers are the right team for Will Howard. He might not blossom beyond his draft positioning, but the organization will give him the best chance of doing so. Of course, many Steelers fans will probably trip over their keyboards trying to dispute that.
As it stands, the Steelers’ quarterback depth chart is Mason Rudolph, Skylar Thompson, and Will Howard. The assumption remains that Aaron Rodgers will sign and that he will be the starter. Rudolph would back him up, with Howard developing as the third quarterback. If that isn’t how the Steelers expected things to go, would they have made an earlier move for a quarterback?
