Pittsburgh Steelers sixth-round rookie Will Howard had captured the hearts of the fans as he played well during training camp. Some people believed that he was about to compete with Mason Rudolph for the primary backup job. Right as those talks were starting to heat up, Howard suffered a fractured hand in practice, with the projected timetable being three weeks. That happened before the first preseason game, which meant he will most likely not practice until it's time to prepare for the regular season.
Kelsey Sumners
Steelers QB Will Howard scrambles before attempting a pass on Aug 2, 2025.
The report was that the injury occurred during a quarterback/center exchange, which fueled a little more fire to the Steelers' recent issues at that position. However, Howard did not put any blame on his center as he recently explained what happened on that play.
"Every ounce of me wants to be out there playing, and I'm just sitting here doing nothing," Howard said. "It kills me, especially on something as -- what felt like dumb to me. It was just a freak accident, but, you know, things happen, and it's about how you respond to it and how you handle the adversity."
A freak accident feels like the right way to describe Howard's injury, as it is very rare to see a quarterback break his hand from fielding a snap. A typical play during a team run period suddenly turned bad when Howard realized he lost all ability to grip the ball. It wasn't even a pass play where this happened. A quarterback getting injured on a play where he was supposed to hand it off is also rare, and would definitely be categorized as a freak accident.
Will Howard said the injury occurred during a team run period. He tried to keep practicing but realized something was wrong: “I can normally tolerate pain pretty well. I literally could not grip the football. So I knew something was messed up.”
— Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) August 12, 2025
Of course, Howard can still get better as time goes on. He has been standing close behind the offense during practice as he is taking all the mental reps he can. He might not be able to do things physically, but he can still take this opportunity to put all of his effort on raising his football IQ and becoming a much smarter player for when he is physically ready to play again.
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Steelers QB Will Howard gets ready to take a snap during 2025 training camp in Latrobe, PA.
However, Howard will have a new problem when he is healthy again. Fourth-string quarterback Skylar Thompson had a great game in Preseason Week 1, and he is taking advantage of all the reps that the rookie is missing now. Once he gets back on the field, he won't be fighting for the backup job like many people thought before; he will be battling Thompson for the last spot on the 53-man roster.
Steelers Could Base Their Decision On Upside
Being a rookie does help Howard in this case, though. Teams tend to not cut rookies unless they are seventh-round picks in a deep class. He is not far off from that classification as a sixth-round selection, even if he was seen as an absolute steal. However, teams have already seen what Thompson could do, and that's why Pittsburgh was able to sign him to a futures contract back in January.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Skylar Thompson looks to pass during the first week of preseason in 2025 against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Thompson was not expected to make the 53-man roster for the Steelers, but he most likely has at least done enough to earn him a spot on the practice squad. He had a rough 2024 that saw him get benched for many other options with the Miami Dolphins, while Howard is a rookie coming off of a National Championship win. The rookie has a higher ceiling and is younger, and that could be the deciding factor.
What do you think about Howard's "freak accident" of an injury? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.
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