Steelers 2025 Sixth Round Draft Pick Confident He Can Step Up and Be the Starting QB in 2026
The Steelers are still facing uncertainty at the quarterback position. Many media outlets have reported during this offseason that they believe veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers will return to the team this season. However, he still hasn’t made a decision. This has resulted in continued speculation about who will take over if Rodgers decides to retire. Second-year quarterback Will Howard has some strong supporters rooting for him to become the starter.
Howard joined his teammate Cam Heyward on his Not Just Football podcast to discuss the draft. During the episode, the former Buckeye made it clear that he’s confident he can step up and be the Steelers’ starting quarterback if Rodgers doesn’t return. He said, “I don’t know what Aaron’s gonna do, if he wants to come back. I’d be more than happy to spend another year learning from him, but if he doesn’t, I’m ready. I’m just excited this year to be able to show the city and to show my teammates and everybody within the organization that I can be the guy that they can lean on, and that I can be the starting quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Doesn’t matter if I was taken in the sixth round. That stuff doesn’t matter. All you need is a chance. All you need is a foot in the door and an opportunity, and I want to take that and run with it. We’re going for world championships. I want to win a Super Bowl.”
Rodgers is among the young quarterback’s supporters. He took Howard under his wing and mentored him last season. During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show in March, the future Hall of Famer praised the 24-year-old. He remarked, “Will, in general, I think, has what it takes from a personality and a moxie standpoint to have a long career in the league.” Rodgers described Howard’s mindset. He explained, “Will has the right mindset. He’s a very humble guy. He asked a lot of questions. He was in my hip pocket for a bunch, and I loved it. I mean, I really did. I’m a big Will Howard, not just a fan as a human, but a believer as a player that when his time comes, he’s going to be more than capable of being not just a consistent starter, but a guy who can stick in the league for a long, long time. And it’s because of his mindset.”
Rodgers also explained, “I think from an intelligence standpoint, processing, the pre-snap stuff, I think he’s going to be great at that. He was my right-hand man with all the signals this year. He was phenomenal at that. He sat next to me in every meeting. He was sitting next to me in the quarterback room. He sat next to me in the big room when we went offense, and I loved it because I was always whispering things to him.” He added, “He learned how I did. When I was a young player, I studied defenses, and I studied defensive signals and secondary and different things, and that’s what he was doing.”
Howard made a strong impression during the voluntary minicamp, which took place earlier this week. The 24-year-old played QB1. New head coach Mike McCarthy spoke about Howard’s progress on the second day of minicamp. He commented, “I think he’s done a really good job.” McCarthy elaborated, “I think the level of conditioning and preparation, I know just meeting with him in January, compared to today, he’s had a really good offseason before the offseason. He’s in much better shape. I’ve been very impressed with his movement skills. We’re just two days into the footwork drills, which we’ve been allowed to do the last two days, and I’ve been impressed.”
Howard also made a great impression on new Steelers offensive coordinator Brian Angelichio, who spoke with the media on April 17th. Angelichio said, “I’ve really enjoyed Will. He’s got a great personality, he’s been impressive in the quarterback room.” He added, “Obviously, we haven’t got out on the grass with him, but his ability to communicate, articulate, pick up the scheme…it’s been really impressive.”
