The Pittsburgh Steelers wrapped up practices at their St. Vincent’s College training camp facility Monday. That made the start of this week a natural time for head coach Mike McCarthy to reflect back on the team’s progress this month.
Nothing is more crucial for the team’s future than what development has or hasn’t been made behind center.
In his first training camp, McCarthy faced two very different quarterback goals. First, get 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers ready for the season. Secondly, develop youngsters Will Howard and Drew Allar while determining if there’s room for both on the 53-man roster.
McCarthy liked what he saw from both young signal-callers during training camp. On Monday, he spoke most highly of Howard.
“I just remember the first time I sat down with Will [Howard] shortly after I got the job. I think he’s clearly done everything that’s been asked of him,” McCarthy told reporters. “He’s changed his body. I think when he left here at that time, came back for offseason program, you could see the effects of the training and then took another step in the five weeks off.
“I thinks he’s very athletic. There’s a lot there to work with. Football comes very natural to him, so he’s definitely grown a lot, and he’ll continue to grow.”
McCarthy’s latest analysis of Howard’s progress comes with 13 days left before the Steelers cut their roster to 53 players.
Steelers’ Mike McCarthy Offers Another Positive Review on Will Howard
Whatever McCarthy says about the team’s quarterbacks over the next 13 days will go under the microscope for analysis. The Steelers have four quarterbacks on the roster, one of which could be cut or traded before August 30.
The most likely candidate for that is Howard. But the 24-year-old played well in his NFL preseason debut Thursday versus the Green Bay Packers. Since then, he’s received strong endorsements from McCarthy.
“We’ve got two fine young quarterbacks here, and I’m excited about their future,” concluded McCarthy while talking about Howard and Allar.
While training camp ended Monday, August practices will continue for the Steelers. The team also has two more preseason contests over the next 11 days.
Howard will very likely have to continue improving in those opportunities to earn a roster spot.
Will Steelers Keep Four Quarterbacks?
A lot of pundits expect the Steelers to cut ties with either Howard or veteran signal-caller Mason Rudolph. But the team also hasn’t publicly ruled out keeping four quarterbacks.
McCarthy has spoken highly of all the team’s signal-callers since the spring. At offseason workouts, he stressed how much the team has four quarterbacks it likes.
At the beginning of training camp, general manager Omar Khan specifically addressed keeping four signal-callers on the active roster. Khan left open the possibility.
If the Steelers can create the roster space, retaining Rodgers, Rudolph, Howard and Allar makes a lot of sense. Rodgers is obviously the team’s 2026 starter, but Rudolph isn’t expendable because he has the most experience of the other three quarterbacks.
Should Rodgers suffer an injury this fall, Rudolph has the best chance of saving Pittsburgh’s 2026 season.
But Rudolph isn’t the long-term answer. Either Howard or Allar could be.
Keeping both opens the door for the pair to continue competing for future opportunities in McCarthy’s offense.
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