Steelers' Will Howard details how he's already being mentored by Aaron Rodgers

Rookie quarterback Will Howard previously mentioned that Aaron Rodgers has been "super down-to-earth and not at all what you would expect" ever since the future Hall of Famer officially joined the Pittsburgh Steelers in time for their mandatory minicamp that ran from June 10-12. 

While speaking with reporters on Thursday, Howard touched upon how Rodgers emerged as a mentor during his first week with the Steelers. 

"He told me on my five-step drops, 'Hey, don't get too wide on the top of your drop. Keep your base a little tighter just so you can generate more force,'" Howard said about a conversation he had with Rodgers, as shared by Joe Clark of Steelers Depot. "And that was just something he said yesterday that already helped me out today. Out there on the field, I could tell, that was an impact for me."

Rodgers allegedly wasn't always the best big brother for Zach Wilson when the two shared a locker room as New York Jets quarterbacks. However, Jordan Love of the Green Bay Packers has often spoken highly about what he learned while serving as a backup for the 41-year-old across several years. While Love was a 2020 first-round draft pick, Howard is a sixth-round choice who shouldn't face a live defense in a meaningful game anytime soon. 

It's unclear if the one-year, team-friendly contract Rodgers accepted to join the Steelers will be the last he signs as an active player. It's still early days into their relationship, but it sounds as if Rodgers will do whatever he can over the next handful of months to get Howard ready to compete for a starting job as soon as next summer. 

"He's a great mentor, has already treated me with the utmost respect and just been really good to me," Howard added about his interactions with Rodgers. "And a guy like that, he doesn't have to do that. So I really just appreciate him being willing to take me under his wing a little bit and give me pointers and tips here and there. There's already some things he's said to me that have already helped me. So I'm just excited to learn as much as I can from that guy and take everything he says and put it in the bank."

Whether or not Pittsburgh's Rodgers experiment is ultimately viewed as a success will be determined by where he guides the club as a QB1 from September through at least January 2026. That said, it's possible that getting Howard ready to take over as the starter could go down as the most important thing Rodgers accomplishes during his Steelers tenure.