If the Pittsburgh Steelers move on from QB Aaron Rodgers – or if Rodgers moves on from them – and the team takes a swing at any young “upside” quarterback, the immediate concern is obvious. What if he fails? What if Malik Willis or Will Howard or some other non-geriatric quarterback falls on his face and leaves Pittsburgh back at square one?
A fair concern. It’s always the fear and risk of sticking your neck out and banging the table that this is the guy. It’s not fun being wrong.
That, however, doesn’t tell the whole story. That isn’t the only worry. In fact, there’s an even bigger problem.
What if the guy doesn’t fail? What if he’s just…decent?
Binary is good. Black and white provides direction and easy decisions. If, and let’s just use Willis as the example for the rest of the article, he goes out there and plays great, the Steelers have their answer. Got the guy, stay the course. If Willis stinks it up and proves to be a mirage, that isn’t easy, but it sure is simple. He’s not the guy; try again in 2027’s, hopefully, stacked quarterback class.
The grey area is where things get tough. What if Willis is pretty good? Plays relatively well, the Steelers win their usual 9-10 games with flashes of big plays and moments of ugly ones.
That’s the worst place to be. What do you do? Pass up on a 2027 quarterback search and stick with Willis? Bail on the idea and pursue a top rookie? Criticism is coming no matter the lane. Doubly so, if you get it wrong.
Stick with Willis and see him struggle and be mocked for it. Draft a quarterback who doesn’t pan out and be shredded for not seeing the original plan through. Internally, coaches and front office decision-makers might be divided. Any choice will be second-guessed. Any error will erode trust.
It’s the one upside to what happened to the New York Jets. They took the chance on Justin Fields. It didn’t work. But there’s no drawn-out discussion over whether Fields should be given another chance. Thumbs down, he’s out, and the team can move on to whatever comes next – even if that next is far from clear.
Give me Willis. Or Howard. And give me a clear outcome. Pass or fail makes decision-making universal. No debate, no disagreement, no conversation needed. Everyone is rowing the boat together.
The NFL rarely offers such scenarios. Most are nuanced and provide something in between. That’s not to say Pittsburgh shouldn’t embrace a hopeful like Willis, Howard, or the rest. Scared money don’t make money. But asking if he fails is probing the wrong question. The risk is if he falls somewhere in the middle. The worst place any quarterback gamble could be.
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