The Steelers are a little over a week into training camp, and the quarterback battle is unfolding. Pittsburgh isn’t worried about who its No. 1 quarterback will be, as Aaron Rodgers will fill that role. However, the Steelers are still trying to determine who will be Nos. 2 and 3 on the depth chart.
Mason Rudolph, Drew Allar and Will Howard are all competing for the No. 2 and No. 3 spots, and the Steelers released their first depth chart on Wednesday and didn’t have Allar in the top 3.
Howard is Ahead of Allar on First Depth Chart
The Steelers listed Rodgers as their No. 1 quarterback, followed by Rudolph at No. 2 and Howard coming in at No. 3, with Allar behind him.
It’s not that big of a surprise that Allar is No. 4 heading into the first preseason game, as he was the Steelers’ third-round pick in this year’s draft.
Just because the Steelers took Allar so high in the draft doesn’t mean he will secure one of the quarterback backup spots when the roster is cut down to 53 players at the end of the month. Even though new head coach Mike McCarthy wasn’t around when Pittsburgh selected Howard in the 2025 NFL Draft, Howard could still prove to be a better player than Allar.
Allar is coming off a tough season at Penn State, where he was expected to be one of the top prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft and could have been a candidate for the No. 1 pick heading into last season. Unfortunately, he didn’t start strong, recording 1,100 passing yards with eight touchdowns and three interceptions in just six games. The Nittany Lions lost three of those six games, falling to Oregon, UCLA and Northwestern, and Allar didn’t make it out of the fourth quarter against the Wildcats. He suffered a broken left ankle in the game against Northwestern, abruptly ending his season and any hopes of being a first-round pick.
Howard Could Win the Steelers’ No. 3 QB Job
Howard also faced an injury bug last season, but his injury occurred at the NFL level. The Steelers selected Howard with the 185th pick in 2025, but he suffered a bone fracture in his finger during training camp, which cut his preseason short and delayed the start of the regular season.
The Steelers never got a chance to see Howard compete in any games last season, so he is just like Allar, still unproven at the highest level.
Of course, Allar is going to have the upper hand in the quarterback competition since the Steelers drafted him higher. But if he doesn’t show that he is better than Howard in the next four weeks, Allar could be the odd man out.
It seems the Steelers will keep Rudolph as the No. 2 quarterback behind Rodgers, since he has started in the NFL before. Pittsburgh can’t afford to have two quarterbacks who have never played in the NFL backing up Rodgers, who is 42 years old and could go down at any moment.
Steelers Take Initial Public Stance on Drew Allar vs. Will Howard