The Steelers’ offseason is already off to a head-scratching start - and not because of a blockbuster trade or splashy free-agent signing. No, it’s the sudden elevation of sixth-round quarterback Will Howard into the spotlight that’s turning heads in Pittsburgh.
It started subtly enough, with team president Art Rooney II offering a few comments during an in-house interview about new head coach Mike McCarthy. Rooney mentioned that McCarthy “likes Will Howard” and sees “tremendous upside.”
Fair enough - coaches often talk up young players. But then the conversation didn’t just continue.
It snowballed.
A few days later, former Steelers offensive coordinator Bruce Arians joined Ryan Clark on the Inside the NFL podcast and took the praise a step further. “Will Howard, I think, is the future of Pittsburgh,” Arians said, citing McCarthy’s history of developing quarterbacks.
That’s not a throwaway line. That’s a declaration. And it’s one that’s left more than a few Steelers fans wondering: Are we talking about the same Will Howard?
Let’s rewind. Howard was a sixth-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
He hasn’t taken a snap in a regular-season game - or even a preseason one, for that matter. An injury in training camp cut short his rookie summer before he could make any sort of impression on the field.
So when you hear him being described as “the future,” you’re left asking: based on what?
This isn’t to knock Howard. He had a solid college career and clearly showed enough for Pittsburgh to take a late-round flyer on him.
But history is not on his side. Since 2000, nearly 100 quarterbacks have been selected in the sixth or seventh rounds.
The vast majority never became starters. In fact:
- 93% never became regular NFL starters.
- 84% started fewer than 10 career games.
- 58% never started a single game.
- 45% never threw an NFL pass.
- Just 2% of them posted a career winning record as a starter.
- And only one - Tom Brady - became a true outlier.
Brady, of course, is the exception that proves the rule. He accounts for over half the regular-season wins and nearly all the playoff victories by QBs drafted in those late rounds.
Everyone else? They’re names you probably remember more for what they did after football - think Kliff Kingsbury, Josh Heupel, Greg McElroy.
Coaches. Broadcasters.
Not franchise cornerstones.
So when McCarthy says he’s “really excited about Will Howard” and references his late-season surge at Ohio State, it’s worth remembering that optimism is part of the job. Coaches are supposed to believe they can develop talent. But there’s a big difference between being intrigued by a prospect and anointing him as the future of a storied franchise like the Steelers.
And here’s where things get even murkier. McCarthy’s own résumé is being used to bolster the case for Howard - but some of those bullet points deserve a closer look.
For instance, there’s been mention of his work with Joe Montana in Kansas City. But let’s be honest: Montana was already a four-time Super Bowl champ and league MVP before he ever put on a Chiefs jersey.
He wasn’t exactly a developmental project.
Then there’s Aaron Brooks, a fourth-round pick who became a starter under McCarthy in New Orleans. Brooks had his moments, but his four-year run as the Saints’ QB1 under McCarthy resulted in a .500 record. Respectable, sure - but hardly a launching pad for quarterback whisperer status.
Meanwhile, Kenny Pickett - who just exited Pittsburgh after a rocky tenure - left with a better winning percentage than Brooks and still got labeled a disappointment.
The effort to frame Howard as the next big thing feels like it’s doing more harm than good. It places unfair expectations on a young player who hasn’t even had the chance to prove he belongs in the league, let alone lead a franchise. And it sends a confusing message to fans who are desperate for clarity at the quarterback position.
Look, if Howard ends up carving out a career like Gardner Minshew, Tyrod Taylor, or Trevor Siemian - guys who’ve bounced around the league and managed to stick as competent backups or occasional starters - that would be a massive win. That’s not cynicism. That’s just the reality of how rare it is for late-round quarterbacks to break through.
There’s nothing wrong with being hopeful. Every team wants to find the next diamond in the rough.
But when hope turns into hype - especially this early - it sets a dangerous tone. For Howard, it creates pressure that’s out of proportion with his draft status and experience.
For the Steelers, it raises questions about the direction of the team’s quarterback room.
McCarthy may genuinely believe Howard has something special. And maybe he does. But until the kid takes a real snap in a real game, it might be wise to pump the brakes on the “future of Pittsburgh” talk.
Because if that’s the plan, the Steelers are betting on a long shot - and history hasn’t been kind to those odds.