The 2026 NFL Draft quarterback class, one of which the Pittsburgh Steelers seem likely to dip into, is not getting rave reviews.
Despite what looked like a strong class that Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl praised this summer, most of those players have not lived up to the hype.
“There’s some guys that are really talented coming out. There’s guys that can probably put it into a pocket. There’s guys that can put it into a pocket and win on the run. They have the skills as well. I don’t want to get too much into it right now,” Weidl said in August. “Whether they all come out, we’ll find out. We’ll do our work. We do it every year. We’ve got a great group of scouts. We’ve got continuity. This year is the first time. Last year and this year, we’ve been in the same group together. We’re expecting big things. We’ve talked about it.”
However, NFL evaluators have become increasingly sour on the class through the first quarter of the college football season. Players such as Clemson’s Cade Klubnik, LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, Penn State’s Drew Allar, and others have not taken the leap they were expected to make.
As a result, one evaluator told CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones the class rang as ‘underwhelming.’
“This quarterback class is a lot of hype without a lot of substance,” one evaluator told Jones. “Underwhelming.”
Other players have emerged, such as Oregon’s Dante Moore, Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, and South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers, who have all played well. Yet, those players are not guaranteed to come out this season, and the NFL is still trying to feel out if those players are truly as good as they appear, or if they will crumble down the stretch.
There are others, too, such as Miami’s Carson Beck, Oklahoma’s John Mateer, and others who have stood out in positive ways.
Yet, the NFL has drawn into a consensus through the first few weeks that this appears to be yet another underwhelming quarterback class, and the Steelers, who have Aaron Rodgers as their starter, are still in limbo on their future answer at the position.
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