He enters training camp with the Pittsburgh Steelers as QB3 behind the likes of Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph, and reps will seemingly be limited for him outside of preseason action, but rookie quarterback Will Howard is looking forward to immersing himself into the experience that is Steelers’ training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe.
Speaking to reporters during mandatory minicamp at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex earlier in the week, Howard stated that he’s heard training camp in Latrobe is a grind and compared it to a high school training camp experience he had at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania.
While he knows it won’t be as physically demanding for him as it is for others on the team due to him being a quarterback, the Ohio State product is looking forward to being in that setting in Latrobe as the Steelers bond and come together ahead of the season.
“I’ve heard some things, I’ve heard some things. They say it’s a grind. They say it’s hot, but I’m excited,” Howard said ahead of his first training camp, according to video via Steelers Live on X. “My high school team back in high school, we used to go to Shippensburg every year and we’d do like a camp, where we did like three-a-day practices and it was a grind and it sucked, but at the same time I loved it just because I was around my teammates and we got to get so much closer by that. So I’m excited.
“I can’t wait to get up there and grind. And I know being a quarterback, it probably won’t be as…physically grueling, maybe for me as maybe the guys in the trenches. But mentally, I gotta be on my stuff, and I’m excited.”
Having some experience of going away for preseason camp dating back to high school, particularly in the August heat of Pennsylvania, should bode well for Howard. Still, there is nothing that can prepare you for an NFL training camp.
Granted, it’s not as physically demanding as it used to be with the new Collective Bargaining Agreement rules in place, but the multi-week stay in Latrobe in college dorms and going through practices and meetings all day long is a challenge.
It will be a new, eye-opening experience for Howard, especially with all the fans that will show up in the rolling hills of Latrobe throughout the late summer to catch a glimpse of the Steelers ahead of the season.
For Howard, the challenge will be staying mentally sharp and honing in on all the details from the quarterback position, particularly in the playbook under offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. With Rodgers and Rudolph ahead of him, reps will be limited, emphasizing getting as many mental reps as possible to ensure he’s ready to go entering the preseason and the season.
But the reps that he does get will be watched closely as there’s a lot of buzz surrounding the sixth-round pick entering his rookie season.
