What Aaron Rodgers told rookie Will Howard after signing with Steelers

Earlier in June, Pittsburgh Steelers rookie quarterback Will Howard revealed that he received some helpful pointers from Aaron Rodgers shortly after Rodgers joined the club in time to participate in its mandatory minicamp that ran from June 10-12. 

During a Tuesday appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show," Rodgers touched upon what he told Howard shortly after the two officially became teammates. 

"Will is a rookie," Rodgers explained during the show segment, per Grant Grubbs of On3. "I pulled him aside during one of the days and said, 'Listen, I want to help you as much as possible, but I’m not going to overstep my bounds. If you want assistance, I’m here, buddy. I want to help you from the playbook on my own mistakes and things that I needed to learn from. That’s where everything’s going to come from. And if I can help you become a better player this year, that would be an incredible achievement for me.'"

The Steelers took a flier on Howard in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft long before Rodgers shared on Tuesday that he is "pretty sure" the upcoming season will be his last as an active player. As Steelers reporter Mike DeFabo of The Athletic pointed out, Rodgers' announcement essentially guarantees that Pittsburgh will have a different Week 1 QB1 for the sixth consecutive campaign next year. 

It is, of course, far too early to even guess where Howard will be in his development in the spring of 2026. According to Howard, Rodgers has already worked with the 23-year-old on his five-step drops and on keeping his "base a little tighter just so [he] can generate more force" on his throws. 

"I was impressed by him," Rodgers added while speaking about Howard on Tuesday. "...I thought he looked really sharp. He made a bunch of great throws. I think there’s definitely some things I can help him with, and some things that are different at the pro level. I’d love to help Will and set him up to have a chance to be the guy for the next — who knows how long."

Current Green Bay Packers starter Jordan Love benefited from having Rodgers as a mentor over Love's first three pro seasons (2020-22). That said, Love was a first-round pick who was drafted to eventually replace a franchise icon. History suggests Howard won't become more than an NFL journeyman, at best.

The Steelers having longtime backup Mason Rudolph on the roster should allow Howard to complete a redshirt rookie season while learning about life in the NFL from an all-time great. For now, Howard's goal should be to do whatever he can over the next nine months or so to convince the Steelers that they don't need to acquire a top-tier quarterback prospect in next year's draft.