Ray Fittipaldo is convinced the Steelers aren’t abandoning Will Howard just because they drafted Drew Allar in this year’s draft. In fact, he thinks the team should have a much better idea of who Howard is at a quarterback by this time next year than their new rookie. In many ways, that should be obvious, but that also requires a time investment. Fittipaldo sees them putting in that time.
“I think they can have a pretty good idea”, he wrote recently about Will Howard in the near future. “It will be the second year for the Steelers front office to watch Howard in practice and (hopefully this year) preseason games. Obviously, Mike McCarthy and his staff are starting in a different place, but I believe they can have a much better understanding on Howard by next spring than Allar”.
“I think they’re going to take it slow with Allar and build him up with new mechanics”, he continued. “His development will take longer in my opinion. But yes, I think practices and preseason games are enough for the new staff to get a pretty detailed evaluation on Howard and his potential”.
The Steelers have, of course, had some glowing things to say about Will Howard this offseason. Especially HC Mike McCarthy, who has already said he expects Howard will be an NFL starter. That could be hard to do if they also intend to develop Drew Allar into a starter, of course. And, presumably, they wouldn’t have drafted Allar if they didn’t think he could be better.
But there’s also a chance that he won’t be, and the Steelers need to be prepared for that. McCarthy is confident he can develop both Will Howard and Drew Allar simultaneously, despite the limitations of offseason practice restrictions. This offseason will put that theory to the test.
The Steelers selected Will Howard in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Despite his fall, which he blames on Shedeur Sanders, Pittsburgh has always expressed a disproportionately high opinion of him. That really escalated this offseason, though, especially in light of the underwhelming draft class.
Of course, Drew Allar was a part of that class and the Steelers drafted him, which obviously says something. What it says, exactly, and about who, we may not know the full details. What we do know is that McCarthy hasn’t stopped glazing Howard just because they drafted Allar. He hopes that, between the two of them, at least one will pan out.
And if neither do, well, there’s always the next first-round pick, in theory. Of course, they’ve already drafted a first-round quarterback that didn’t work out. They’ve also hoped for two years running to have a first-round quarterback worthy of taking, which they haven’t had.
And so we’re still stuck with Will Howard and Drew Allar, the current hopes for the Steelers’ future. But Howard, despite how many portray it, is not a rookie. He’s had an entire season of NFL coaching, despite his injury. While he might not have in-stadium experience yet, he has all of the classroom knowledge any second-year quarterback would have. And it’s not like he isn’t putting in the effort.
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