Steelers, waiting on Rodgers, draft QB Howard

PITTSBURGH — One more quarterback down. One to go?

The Pittsburgh Steelers finally added to the quarterback room by selecting Ohio State’s Will Howard in the sixth round (185th overall), joining him in a position group with former Kansas State teammate Skylar Thompson and Mason Rudolph. Howard is the first quarterback selected by the Steelers since the team drafted Kenny Pickett with the 20th overall pick and Chris Oladokun in the seventh round in 2022.

The Steelers have been clear that they plan on taking four quarterbacks to training camp, meaning there’s one spot remaining as the team awaits Aaron Rodgers’ prolonged decision. Steelers owner and president Art Rooney II said Friday the team “may get word soon” on Rodgers, who is a free agent for the first time after being released by the New York Jets earlier this offseason.

“That’s certainly a possibility,” coach Mike Tomlin told NFL Network on Saturday of adding Rodgers. “I’m not going to forecast the ifs and whens regarding not only him, but any other potential free agent. We’ve had really productive talks with him, and I’ve enjoyed having productive talks with him and getting to know him.”

In Howard, the Steelers landed a quarterback with national championship-winning pedigree after he helped the Buckeyes to a title in his lone year with the school. That experience — and his elevated play during the playoffs where he threw for 630 yards, five touchdowns and completed 74% of his pass attempts — impressed the Steelers brass.

“You see him in the big moments of critical possession downs, even in the national championship game, momentum plays to kind of end the game,” Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said. “Extremely excited to work with Will.”

For the season, Howard completed 73% of his attempts, second to only Shedeur Sanders in completion percentage among FBS quarterbacks in 2024. He also threw for 4,010 yards, 35 touchdowns and 10 interceptions as he helped the Buckeyes go 14-2.

Howard is also the second Ohio State player drafted by the Steelers this year after the team took outside linebacker Jack Sawyer in the fourth round.

“Jack and I are about as close as two guys could be,” Howard said. “I always said throughout this process — one of these Ohio State guys, I’m going to end up with one of them. And man, I’m so glad that Captain Jack and I are going to Pittsburgh together.”

In his career, including four seasons at Kansas State, Howard passed for 9,795 yards, 83 touchdowns and 35 interceptions and completed 63.8% of his pass attempts.

Rooney told Steelers Nation Radio on Friday that any quarterback added to the roster through the draft would likely be a developmental project. That’s a challenge Howard said he’s embracing.

“It’s not a matter of what happens out on the field or if I play right away, it’s about getting better and it’s about learning,” Howard said after being selected. “And whoever is in the room with me, whoever is there competing with us, I just cannot wait to delve into this situation and to really give my all to this team, because that’s how I do things, man. I don’t do things half in, I go all in, and I have every expectation that this next step with the Pittsburgh Steelers is going to be amazing for me.”

Though the team didn’t host Howard on a predraft visit, the Steelers had a formal interview with Howard at the NFL scouting combine and had dinner with him the night before his pro day in Columbus.

“When you get to spend time with somebody, you get to learn what they’re about and really how they interact with their teammates, what other people think about ’em at the facility,” Smith said of what he learned of Howard. “I came away, all of us did, just extremely impressed with Will.”