The 2025 college football season hasn’t started yet, but that hasn’t stopped speculation about the 2026 NFL Draft. In a press conference on Thursday, the press asked Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl for his thoughts on the crop of quarterbacks in the ’26 draft. While it’s early, he seems impressed.
“Early take. There are some guys that are really talented coming out. There are guys who can win from the pocket, guys that can win from the pocket and win on the run. They can run; they can beat you with their legs as well. I don’t get too much into it right now. It’s early,” Weidl said via transcript provided by the team.
Weidl also said he thinks the 2026 quarterback class is better than the 2025 group.
“It seems to be. Now whether they all come out, we’ll find out. We’ll do our work. We do every year. We have a great group of scouts. That continuity this year, it’s the first time from last year, this year, we’ve had the same group together. We’re expecting big things, we talked about it. It’s a great opportunity for our staff to have all these picks and see how the year plays out.”
As Weidl said, the big question is whether every draft-eligible quarterback decides to come out. QB Arch Manning is one of the top passers of the group, but there’s been speculation he’ll stay at Texas. This was fueled from comments by his grandfather who believes Manning has two college seasons left to play.
On paper, there are a number of quarterbacks who could go in the first round. Penn State’s Drew Allar was getting first-round buzz for this year’s draft before deciding to stay in school. South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers, Indiana’s Francisco Mendoza and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier stand out as other names who could be picked early.
With Aaron Rodgers potentially playing his final season in 2025, the Steelers should be in the quarterback market in the 2026 draft. The team has a treasure trove of draft picks. With 12 projected picks next year that could allow them to move up the board if necessary, there’s enough ammo to justify the scouting staff watching quarterbacks extra closely next season.
The Steelers selecedt Will Howard in the sixth round of the 2025 draft, but it’s hard to see the team passing on a quarterback early if they have a chance to take someone they like. It’s still early, as Weidl acknowledged, and the names mentioned now may not be the same come February. Additionally the top quarterbacks certainly come with questions. The overall talent level looks to be high, though, as Weidl seems to like where the group is at right now.
