Welcome to the Steelers, Will Howard

Rudolph did sit for a year. He was thrown into the job when Roethlisberger was hurt early in his second season.

I'm not sure the big quarterback class of 2026 is a problem. I doubt Howard is going to get the opportunity to take the job and solidify his place as the starter before that draft, anyway.

 

Rudolph is entering his 8th NFL season.

 

Maybe that was Ben’s strategy

 

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RudoMa00.htm

6th. 1 with tenn. and this will be the 5th with the steelers.

 

2018-Steelers
2019-Steelers
2020-Steelers
2021-Steelers
2022-Steelers
2023-Steelers
2024-Titans
That's 7 seasons in the NFL, this will be his eighth.

 

Not much of a window if you ask me

 

This will be his eighth year in the league. The two he wasn't good enough to even get into a game still count.

 

Hardly anybody knows anything about whether or not a QB will turn out. 95% of the position is mental, and not just processing... Its swagger, pre-snap recognition, post-snap processing, leadership.... It almost matters very little whether or not you have great athleticism or a great arm. If you're NFL average in both those categories, but a great leader, pre and post snap processor, and have some swagger, you can be a top 5 QB in the league.

There's a lot of guesswork involved that's for sure. If you liked Drake Maye at all last year, there's no reason not to like Howard. He's a lesser athlete and arm, but a more NFL ready processor and under center QB with PA concepts. I hope he gets a shot at some point this year. I'd love to see him in a real game before we go and draft another QB early in 26. Though, at a 6th round price, he may not be afforded that opportunity.

 

2018 and 2022 rudolph did not receive a single snap. i stand corrected. on paper he was in the nfl, not on the field for two of them.

 

Figuring out disguised coverages is part of processing. Maybe experience will get him there, but it's no sure thing. Neither is him keeping his mechanics consistent, which is another issue I've read about. Then again, there are reasons he lasted that long in the draft.

 

The Gabriel pick made no sense to me. If they didn't like Sanders or Howard, McCord was still on the board there.

For as good of a draft as they had, they still flashed some true orange and brown with the Gabriel/Sanders scenario.

 

My floor for Howard is " useful backup"
- that's my floor. Howard, if he doesn't get traded, will be a Steeler for years.

 

What is his realistic ceiling for him?

 

It would be FREAKING AWESOME.

 

That’s not a window that’s a port hole

 

The one knock on Howard is that he had receivers that will be All Pros in the NFL. That's one way to look at it, the other way is that he is used to throwing the ball to All Pro caliber receivers and doesn't have to adjust to their speed and route running ability.

 

Somebody had to throw the passes that made those guys all-pro caliber receivers. Every coin has 2 sides. The ability of the receivers helps a QB look good. The QB's ability to put the ball where he needs to helps a receiver look good.

 

I just watched the Will Howard interview with Gruden; he's an easy guy to root for and a good player to add to the QB room.