Aaron Rodgers was all in on the Pittsburgh Steelers grooming Will Howard to be his successor last year but he's been rather mum on that plan since returning for 2026. If he's seen his backups in training camp, there's no way he's inspired by their play.
Mason Rudolph will be called into action should the unfortunate need arise this year but it's highly unlikely he remains a Steeler into 2027 and beyond. That's where Will Howard and rookie Drew Allar come in. The former was drafted under the old Mike Tomlin regime and is having to learn a new offense under Mike McCarthy. The latter has the advantage given he was McCarthy's draft pick in April. It won't be that easy of a decision.
Will Howard has struggled early in Steelers camp
Reports indicate Howard has struggled to really show any signs of being ready to handle backup duties and Allar was already declared a longer-term project by McCarthy upon arriving in the Steel City.
“It [hasn’t] been a great first week and a half for him,” The Pat McAfee Show's Mark Kaboly said of Howard. “I’m sure he can get better. I mean, he’s still a talented guy. But he just hasn’t flashed as much. To me, it’s just two young quarterbacks who don’t know what they’re doing yet."
Steelers won't get vote of confidence from Aaron Rodgers
The organization cannot expect Rodgers to impart some magical wisdom on the young pair across the span of the 2026-27 campaign and then either one will be ready to take on the challenge next season. It just doesn't work like that in the NFL and Rodgers surely feels no need to do the Steelers any favors.
If McCarthy wants Allar to develop into the team's future starter, he's got to commit to that. The problem is, Pittsburgh hasn't finished low enough in the standings to earn a high enough draft pick to find the next Ben Roethlisberger.
Allar, who struggled in his final season at Penn State and suffered an unceremonious season-ending injury, was heavily doubted to be a potential starter in the NFL. Despite throwing for over 3,300 yards in 2024, his decision-making was questionable as he took 19 sacks behind the Nittany Lions offensive line. He's got a long uphill road to take, especially by the Steelers' standards but he's apparently been learning a lot from the future Hall of Famer at camp and catching attention for his deep-ball abilities.
Drew Allar might end up being the steal of the draft pic.twitter.com/WW8n6ebcd4
— Bussin' With The Boys (@BussinWTB) August 2, 2026
"[My long ball has] been something I have been working on - in terms of the trajectory of the throw. I picked Aaron’s brain on it a week or so ago," Allar told reporters. "It’s nice to do it in a live setting, against live DBs, in tight coverage."
Rodgers, rightfully, shouldn't want any part in weighing in on which of the two QBs should be next under center. His opinion on the matter -- if it's still leaning toward Howard -- would put him at odds with his old Green Bay Packers boss who clearly wants to spend time molding Allar into ... something. For once, silence is the wise move for Rodgers when folks are going to want to see if he'll endorse either plan.
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