The Pittsburgh Steelers have announced that there is a verbal agreement with Mike McCarthy for him to be their new head coach. The reported five-year deal ties him to the organization for the foreseeable future. The franchise doesn't have a history of firing coaches, so McCarthy is likely to be the leader in the locker room through at least the end of the deal, and maybe longer if he gets an extension at any point in time.
Matt Patterson /Associated Press
Mike McCarthy coaching on the sidelines as Head Coach of the Dallas Cowboys
The biggest upside of the Steelers hiring McCarthy is that he has to be able to develop a quarterback, something that the franchise has failed to of late. It does not matter how he does it or where the prospect comes from; Pittsburgh desperately needs a legitimate signal-caller to have any chance of becoming a true threat in the AFC again.
While making an appearance on Around The NFL, insider Tom Pelissero spoke about a quarterback that both the Steelers and McCarthy are "really high" on, and they don't even have to burn a draft pick or cap space to test him out.
"Will Howard, a late-round draft pick last year out Ohio State that they are really high on in the building — my understanding is Mike McCarthy also is very intrigued by the upside on Will Howard."
The 2025 sixth-round pick in Will Howard never got a proper chance to develop in his rookie season, as he suffered an injury during training camp and missed the entire preseason before being placed on Injured Reserve (IR) . Once he was activated off of IR, he never got to take a single meaningful snap, as he was the emergency third quarterback in all but one game. He was almost exclusively a scout team guy.
Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter / X: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Steelers quarterback Will Howard gets ready to take a snap as he runs the offense while the team works out during a 2025 training camp practice at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA.
Howard was considered a steal, as he was expected to go in the middle rounds but fell to Pittsburgh in the sixth. He won a National Championship in his final year with the Ohio State Buckeyes, so that is a big piece that makes the team excited about his upside. He just has not had a chance to show off if his talents would translate to the professional level yet or not.
One big thing that Howard had in his rookie season was the ability to learn from Aaron Rodgers. He spoke very glowingly about the 42-year-old mentoring him and practically being his quarterback coach throughout the 2025 campaign, even when he was on IR. If he can take those lessons and keep building off of it, there may be some legitimate upside to his game.
Steelers Fans May Finally Get Their Wish
With how rough the 2026 free agency and draft classes seem to be for quarterbacks, many fans have been clamoring for the team to just roll with Howard for the future and see what he has before making a big decision in 2027 and/or beyond. If Pelissero's report is true, there is a very strong likelihood that the former Buckeye will at least get the chance to compete for the job with Mason Rudolph in training camp.
Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (X: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph (2) during 2025 training camp in Latrobe, PA.
Steelers fans have been very angry and restless about recent seasons. Another decent year will cause outrage. Even if the hypothetical McCarthy and Howard combination were to turn out very poorly, the idea of having a bad season and getting the potential to draft a quarterback in the top 12 picks seems to be more enticing than another Wild Card exit. This could be a big year for the organization in a good or bad way. Time will tell, but it surely is getting interesting already.
What do you think about the Steelers rolling with Howard in 2026? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.
#SteelerNation