The Pittsburgh Steelers don't really have a quarterback of the future.
Shoot, until Aaron Rodgers decides what he's up to, they don't even really have a QB of the present.
But it's that future task that's especially important, because beyond Rodgers, it doesn't seem like the currently under contract duo of Mason Rudolph or Will Howard is the answer.
The 2026 NFL Draft isn't loaded with quarterbacks, but ESPN's Ben Solak thinks that the "perfect fit" might be on the board for the Steelers with the 99th selection: Garrett Nussmeier out of LSU.
At one point early in the 2025 college football season, Nussmeier was viewed as a potential first-round pick. Now, he might be available at the end of the third round.
"The connection between the Steelers and Nussmeier is obvious," Solak wrote in a new article on Wednesday. "When Mike McCarthy was the head coach in Dallas, Nussmeier's father, Doug, was his quarterbacks coach. Doug Nussmeier has stayed in the coaching tree, too, following Kellen Moore to the Chargers, then the Eagles and then the Saints. In that the Steelers need a developmental QB2 with more legs than 2025 sixth-rounder Will Howard, Garrett Nussmeier would be an option no matter what. The family connection only helps."
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The best scenario pertaining to Nussmeier for the Steelers would be that Rodgers does indeed return, giving Nussmeier a front row seat to a future Hall of Famer to learn from.
Even then, it's not guarantee Nussmeier would be the long-term answer. The Steelers need to at least take a chance at finding one, though.
"Nussmeier isn't the biggest quarterback, which can be a concern for AFC North play in the uncovered Acrisure Stadium," Solak writes. "He's 6-foot-2 with 9⅛-inch hands. But over 1,804 career snaps at LSU, Nussmeier had only seven fumbles, which is a testament to his ball security. Nussmeier is a strong pocket navigator who can buy an extra half-second while setting up to throw, and he has a wily arm that layers the ball well in intermediate windows. He has a lot of polish on his game and should be called a pro-ready passer for his post-snap acumen."
The Steelers could target a different QB, like Penn State's Drew Allar, with much the same watch-and-learn approach.
It certainly does make sense for them to try someone at the quarterback position earlier than the sixth round where they got Howard a season ago. The position is too important to keep kicking the can down the road.
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