Will Howard is quickly becoming a fan favorite for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite that, he is a sixth-round pick with two players likely ahead of him on the depth chart. As such, he might not have the most significant chance to make an impact in his rookie year. What Howard does have, though, is a wonderful veteran to learn from in Aaron Rodgers. At a youth football camp Howard is hosting in Columbus on Saturday, he spoke about how Rodgers is helping him transition to the NFL, courtesy of WSYX ABC 6’s Kellyanne Stitts.
“It’s been great,” Howard said. “Obviously, being with Aaron the last couple of days is surreal. He couldn’t be a better guy; he’s so knowledgeable. He has so much experience, and he’s been so willing to help me. It’s been an awesome transition.”
With Rodgers now in town, Howard’s chances of playing have gone down significantly. Even if Rodgers were to miss time for some reason this year, the Steelers would likely turn to Rudolph ahead of him. Still, while he might not get the chance to play this year, that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t take advantage of his chance to learn behind one of the better quarterbacks ever to throw a football. All things considered, it’s a great position for him to be in.
It sounds like Howard is already doing so. He’s speaking highly of Rodgers ever since he joined the team. However, since Rodgers took so long to make a decision, Howard has a chance to help him learn the offense as well, which Howard spoke about earlier this week. In terms of the specific ways Rodgers is helping, Howard mentioned a few things.
“Something he really emphasizes is his cadence, like, his cadence is a weapon… And I’m trying to start to replicate it,” Howard said. “Obviously I wanna do what he does now, because he’s the guy… Some footwork stuff that he’s given me… Different things like that have helped me out.”
Once again, the Steelers quarterback room has been reset, and it’s in an interesting place this season. There’s a future Hall-of-Famer in Rodgers, a longtime backup in Rudolph, a late-round rookie in Howard, and another backup in Skylar Thompson. It’s a unique room, but they all bring something different to the table, and seem to mesh well together.
How Howard’s future with the Steelers will unfold is hard to predict. He probably won’t have any meaningful playing time this year. As the Steelers gear up to potentially draft their quarterback of the future next offseason, there’s a chance he doesn’t really get to play at all. As a sixth-round pick, he wouldn’t be breaking any trends if he didn’t play. However, the fan base appreciates him for good reason. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders. We’ll have to see if he ever gets a real chance in the league.
Watch all your favorite Amazon Prime Video Sports broadcasts live and free. Get access to NFL, NBA, NASCAR, WNBA, and more – all included with your Prime membership!