The Steelers don’t need a mystery at quarterback in their preseason finale. They need a look.
After splitting starting duties between two different quarterbacks against the Green Bay Packers and New York Jets, Pittsburgh’s final tune-up against the Buffalo Bills should be about giving rookie Drew Allar the stage against better competition. The Steelers head to Orchard Park hoping Buffalo rolls out at least some of its starters, which would give Pittsburgh’s younger players a chance to line up against the Bills’ best.
That’s the test Allar hasn’t really gotten yet. And after what happened against the Jets, it feels like the right one.
Mike McCarthy stopped short of saying outright that Allar will start the preseason finale, but he did leave the door open by suggesting two young quarterbacks could play against Buffalo. Still, the case for Allar is hard to miss. Will Howard threw two interceptions against the Jets, and that performance made the decision feel pretty straightforward.
Allar’s numbers from that game weren’t pretty: 11 of 23 for 110 yards. On paper, it looked rough.
In the stadium, it looked rougher at times. But the blame wasn’t all on him.
Pittsburgh’s third- and fourth-string receivers didn’t do him many favors, with what felt like a flood of dropped passes. Allar was getting the ball out with accuracy more often than the stat line suggested, but his targets kept letting him down as the Steelers tried to stay in the game.
Howard’s roster status also remains its own separate issue. Whether he makes the 53-man roster probably hasn’t been fully settled, even if some reporting says otherwise.
But the Bills game doesn’t really change that conversation. If Howard is in, that decision is likely already baked in.
If he’s out, the Jets game probably told the story.
Allar, though, still has something to prove. Pittsburgh can use this matchup to get a better read on whether the rookie’s upside is as real as it looks. More than anything, the Bills game would give the Steelers a baseline - a final checkpoint before Allar disappears until next preseason.
For a third-round rookie in his first NFL summer, this is the last box to check. It could leave the Steelers encouraged.
It could give them a clearer picture of where he stands. Either way, it’s the obvious move.
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Drew Allar Just Revealed What Still Must Change In Pittsburgh
A rougher preseason outing gave Drew Allar and the Steelers a more useful kind of tape to study than another polished stat line would have. After following up his stronger showing with an 11-for-23 effort for 110 yards in Week 2, the rookie quarterback said he saw places where he could have been cleaner, especially by taking the easier completions earlier in drives and helping the offense settle in sooner.
For Pittsburgh, that kind of self-assessment matters as much as the box score right now. The receiving group had its share of drops, the overall performance never really found a rhythm, and Allar is still in the middle of his development, but the encouraging part is that he looked like a young quarterback learning from a difficult night instead of shrinking from it. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Rookie Returner Suddenly Has Everything Riding On One Game
Kaden Wetjens first two preseason games have already put him in the kind of spot every rookie is trying to avoid in late August. The Steelers fourth-round returner flashed some juice in his debut, showing real activity as both a receiver and on special teams, but his follow-up was far quieter and ended with a lost fumble, the sort of mistake that can quickly change the tone of a roster battle.
Now Wetjen has one last chance to make his case before final cuts, and the margin for error is shrinking fast. Insider Mark Kaboly has already described him as on the bubble for Pittsburghs 53-man roster, which leaves the rookie in a simple but unforgiving place: one more strong performance could help him stick, while another uneven outing would make the decision even tougher for the Steelers staff. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers May Be Running Out Of Patience With Broderick Jones
Broderick Jones was supposed to be part of the Steelers long-term answer on the offensive line when Pittsburgh took him in the first round in 2023, but his path since then has been anything but smooth. Injuries, including a neck issue, and repeated position changes have complicated his development, and even with preseason reps, he has not locked down the kind of steady role the team hoped he would grow into.
The bigger question now is less about his draft status than his fit in Pittsburghs plans. Jones has 38 NFL starts on his rsum, but the Steelers still have reason to wonder whether he can be counted on as a reliable tackle, which is why they are weighing every possible outcome, from keeping him as depth to moving on entirely or seeing whether the trade market offers a better answer. [Read more 🡒]