With the Pittsburgh signing Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph and drafting QB Will Howard in the sixth round, the prevailing thought is that Howard will open up his career as the Steelers’ No. 3 quarterback. Even with Howard’s lack of NFL experience, Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger thinks he deserves the chance to beat out Rudolph for the No. 2 spot during the preseason.
“I would split time with Mason and Will in the preseason. I think they’d be playing for the backup job. Whoever is the better one here is my two. So that would be the smartest move to do in the preseason, to give those guys, let them battle for the No. 2 spot,” Roethlisberger said Tuesday on the latest episode of his Footbahlin’ podcast.
Rodgers is going to be Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback, and it would make sense for Rudolph to be his top backup. Rudolph has starting experience, including 13 starts with the Steelers before making five for the Titans last season. His familiarity with running an offense and what to expect from NFL defenses make him a solid option if Rodgers goes down or struggles.
Given his inexperience, making Howard the top backup seems unlikely. But if he’s able to put together a strong preseason, it could be something for the Steelers to at least consider. If nothing else, giving the two of them equal reps in the preseason will help the Steelers find out more about what they have in Howard.
Even with a strong preseason, it’s much more likely the Steelers turn to the veteran in Rudolph as their top backup over Howard. Rudolph’s experience should give him a leg up, and unless he’s drastically worse than Howard, it’s hard not to see him as Rodgers’ top backup.
Howard should see a lot of reps during the preseason though, as it’s extremely unlikely he’ll play during the regular season (despite what Mike Tannenbaum thinks) and it’ll give the Steelers a chance to evaluate him in a real football setting. Howard may not be Pittsburgh’s quarterback of the future, but if he looks like he’s at least capable of being a backup in the league, then the Steelers will be happy with their sixth-round selection. He’s a player who will garner a lot of attention just by the nature of being a rookie quarterback, and it’ll be a good chance for him to prove he deserves a shot.
While that shot may not come as a No. 2 during his rookie season, a strong preseason could go a long way toward keeping Will Howard in Pittsburgh long term.
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