The Steelers’ crowded house at quarterback may now have reason to become less crowded.
Will Howard, a sixth-round pick in 2025 who performed well in his NFL debut a week ago, threw two interceptions on Friday night in a 17-0 loss to the Jets.
For the night, Howard completed 10 of 15 passes for 74 yards in four drives. The two efforts that didn’t end in turnovers were three-and-outs.
“I felt really comfortable in the pocket,” Howard said after the game, via Brooke Pryor of ESPN. “I felt like I was going through my progressions well, especially early first and second down, and felt good about how I played, but those two turnovers will really, really make it sour.”
Howard took the blame for the misfires.
“Both of them were unfortunate,” Howard said. “Just can’t happen. Running a shallow cross and kind of drift a little bit and the safety jumped it. Just got to see in front of that. There’s other little things on the play. . . . And that second one just got undercut and just got to put it out in front of him.”
Coach Mike McCarthy, however, seemed to suggest that receiver Roman Wilson — the target for both throws — may have been partially at fault.
“There’s always plays that are cleaner than others and those two plays were not clean,” McCarthy said.
Rookie third-rounder Drew Allar handled the second half, completing 11 of 23 passes for 110 yards. He was sacked three times.
But Allar’s spot is secure, given the investment of a second-day pick in acquiring him. With four quarterbacks on the roster, the first one to go likely will be Howard. Unless the Steelers decide to carry four on the 53-man roster.
The silver lining from Howard’s struggles could be that it could be easier to slip him through waivers and add him to the practice squad. If the Steelers don’t want to risk losing Howard, the only alternative to keeping four would be to release primary backup Mason Rudolph (who wouldn’t be subject to waivers) with a wink-nod understanding that he’d promptly be re-signed to the practice squad and elevated every week to serve as the No. 2 quarterback behind Aaron Rodgers.
Read the full article here
