Will Howard's Chances With Steelers Get Tougher

The Pittsburgh Steelers had three pretty good performances from their quarterbacks against the Green Bay Packers. They started their exhibition games as well as they could have, which is great news for the team.

It's not the best news for Will Howard, though. The second-year quarterback is fighting to remain on the roster in 2026 and keep his chances of becoming a starting quarterback at the NFL level alive. He played well enough to believe he's capable of performing in this league, but his competition got harder, which wasn't what he needed.

Right now, Mason Rudolph is the favorite to win the backup quarterback job for the Steelers. Mike McCarthy is very impressed with Rudolph during training camp, and it's unlikely the nine-year veteran plays poorly enough to lose that edge in the preseason.

Howard is fighting to surpass Rudolph or prove to the Steelers that he needs to be on the roster because of his potential. Which he flashed by completing seven of nine passes for 86 yards.

But Howard can only show so much, and what he also needs to help him stick around is the Steelers viewing him as a needed option next season. Where things went poorly for Howard is that Drew Allar looked better, and McCarthy noticed.

"When we drafted Drew Allar, we felt we were getting a first-round pick… All of that’s holding true."

That's what McCarthy said on the Pat McAfee Show the day after Allar completed 10 of 13 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns, and rushing for another touchdown against the Packers. He finished the first week of the preseason with the highest passer rating amongst all rookie quarterbacks.

Can Howard Still Stick Around?

The answer is probably yes, but nothing is certain. McCarthy doesn't really want to keep four quarterbacks around, and the Steelers likely need that extra spot for another position.

If Howard and Allar looked like they'd need to battle it out in 2026 for the starting job, then you keep both and see what happens a year from now. But Allar looks like he's the future right now, and unless that changes, there's no need to keep Howard as a backup plan.

Howard now either needs to outshine Allar moving forward or really knock the socks off of McCarthy and surpass Rudolph. That'll be difficult if Allar continues to play a large chunk of reps compared to Howard and Rudolph.

Anything is possible, but Howard's outlook on the Steelers' roster definitely got worse against the Packers. Even with a good first showing in the NFL.