Steelers' Will Howard Confronts Painful Reality After Jets Disaster

The Pittsburgh Steelers gave Will Howard his largest NFL audition Friday night, and the result became a painful lesson about how quickly two throws can overshadow an otherwise encouraging performance. Howard moved the offense at times, but his two interceptions helped leave Pittsburgh scoreless in a 17-0 loss to the New York Jets.

It was not the most ideal showing for the second-year QB. Howard completed 10 of his 15 passes for 74 yards during the first half. He appeared comfortable operating Mike McCarthy's offense and helped establish multiple promising drives, but both of his interceptions arrived when Pittsburgh had an opportunity to turn that progress into points.

The quarterback did not attempt to hide from those mistakes afterward. Howard acknowledged that his performance failed to meet the required standard, identified the placement issue behind one interception and accepted responsibility for violating Pittsburgh's constant emphasis on protecting the football.

"It just got undercut," Howard said. "I just have to put it out in front of him, but there are things to learn from. The performance wasn't up to par, obviously. It's just the little details. Yeah, it's a shame because both of those were good drives, and we were moving the ball really well, I felt. One of the things we always talk about is protecting the football. I just have to be better and learn from it."

That response was exactly what Howard needed to provide. There was no excuse about the offensive line, receiver positioning or the difficulty of receiving his first extended preseason start. He understood that the quarterback ultimately owns what happens to the football.

Howard also did not pretend that every part of his night was terrible. He felt comfortable, believed he played well outside the turnovers and recognized that Pittsburgh had established two productive drives. The film should contain legitimate progress even though the final numbers created an ugly picture.

The first turnover came in the red zone when Andre Cisco undercut Howard's attempted pass. Instead of Pittsburgh potentially tying the game, the Jets gained possession and erased the work Howard had completed throughout the drive. His second interception followed on Pittsburgh's next possession. Howard attempted a deep pass toward Roman Wilson, but Samuel Womack secured the underthrown football. Once again, a promising drive ended because the quarterback failed to protect the possession when the play did not unfold perfectly.

Those two moments made it impossible to call the performance good. Quarterbacks are measured by scoring drives, decision-making and ball security. Howard may have felt comfortable for most of the half, but comfort means little when two avoidable throws keep the offense off the scoreboard.

McCarthy explained after the game that Howard allowed one mistake to become two on both interceptions. Something within each play went wrong, but Howard did not properly play through it. The quarterback's comments showed that he understood the coach's criticism and knew where his response failed.

Steelers Need Howard's Lesson To Stick

Howard's honesty will matter only if his next performance looks different. He can study the coverage, correct his ball placement and improve his response when a play breaks down. The real evaluation comes when he faces another unexpected problem and must choose between forcing a throw or protecting the offense.

Mason Rudolph remains the safer backup because Pittsburgh already knows he can manage those situations. Howard is attempting to prove that his upside can eventually be paired with the reliability required from an NFL quarterback. Friday showed that he has not reached that point yet.

The encouraging part is that Howard understands the stakes. He did not leave the stadium believing his completion percentage or several good throws were enough. The turnovers ruined his night, and his response suggested he is prepared to own the failure instead of running from it.

One ugly preseason performance should not define Howard's future. How he responds could. If he learns to preserve the football when something goes wrong, the loss to New York may eventually become one of the most valuable experiences of his development.

Share your Steelers thoughts with me on X (@anthonyghalkias), and let me know what you made of Howard's response. Follow for more Steelers coverage, quarterback discussion and roster analysis as Pittsburgh approaches its preseason finale.