Charlie Batch
Charlie Batch
The Pittsburgh Steelers kept all four of their quarterbacks on their initial 53-man roster. That was one of their biggest questions this offseason, but they saw enough out of their three backups to keep them all. Many people didn’t expect that, though. Former Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch said there was a zero-percent chance that Pittsburgh would keep all of its signal callers, and he isn’t budging off that take.
“I’m still adamant about that,” Batch said Monday on his Snap Count podcast. “Keeping four, it doesn’t make sense. Because if you are going into each week, you know you have two on your inactive, which is going to be your third and fourth, and there’s a strong chance that the backup quarterback’s not playing.
“You essentially are playing with three less players than your opponent… I just don’t think this is going to continue. Will moves be made? I anticipate one. Because the rosters aren’t set.”
Batch is correct that the Steelers can still make changes to their roster. While they didn’t make any waiver claims, they could shuffle the deck in other ways.
That includes potentially making a trade. There are some quarterback-needy teams still out there. The Steelers weren’t the only squad to keep four quarterbacks, either. The Minnesota Vikings, Philadelphia Eagles, and Atlanta Falcons also stuck with four signal callers. Batch thinks that all four teams are waiting to try to deal one of their backups to the New York Jets.
“Everybody’s playing chess right now,” he said. “They’re gonna hold off because they want the Jets to give up something, that’s just my prediction, and that something is a draft pick for one of these quarterbacks.”
The Jets have Geno Smith as their starter, but they need depth at quarterback. Fourth-round rookie Cade Klubnik is their only other player at that position currently. Smith had an ugly 2025 season, so the Jets might want a veteran behind him in case he struggles again.
That could make New York a trade destination for Mason Rudolph. However, a recent report indicated that the Steelers didn’t get any offers that they liked enough to part with Rudolph before trimming their roster. That makes it seem like they’re not just going to give him away.
Therefore, Batch might want to start considering that Pittsburgh could keep all four of its quarterbacks. It’s at least far more possible than he believes. Aaron Rodgers isn’t going anywhere, and the Steelers clearly like Drew Allar and Will Howard. Rudolph feels like the biggest question mark, and Pittsburgh clearly likes him. Things could still change, but time is running out on Batch’s take.