What Steelers' Will Howard Needs to Do Against Jets

After laying a strong foundation in the Pittsburgh Steelers' preseason opener, which also served as his professional debut, Will Howard is looking to build on that performance heading into the team's bout with the New York Jets.

Against the Green Bay Packers at Acrisure Stadium last week, Howard entered the game in relief of Mason Rudolph and completed seven of his nine passing attempts for 86 yards.

Because Rudolph won't play against the Jets, Howard will get the starting nod and have plenty of runway to prove himself while likely splitting the overall reps with rookie Drew Allar.

With Rudolph remaining the favorite to win the backup job behind Aaron Rodgers, the onus is on Howard to show progress and either force Pittsburgh to keep four quarterbacks on the 53-man roster or at least keep the organization open-minded about handing him the No. 2 role.

What Must Howard Show vs. New York?

Over his first handful of snaps against the Packers, there were moments when Howard looked a bit flustered.

Not that it was a glaring issue, though the 2025 sixth-round pick seemed to abandon the pocket too early a couple of times and had some errant ball placement on his first few throws, even if they were still completed.

The huge plus from Howard's showing was the way he settled in as the game went on and how well he appeared to read the defense while displaying increasingly impressive pocket presence.

His poise popped back up in a major way as well, and overall, it's hard not to be optimistic about his future prospects based on his body of work in the game.