Steelers’ Will Howard May Already Have A Huge Head Start Under Mike McCarthy

The Pittsburgh Steelers made their decision on who the franchise's 17th head coach all-time will be. They conducted three in-person interviews with Brian Flores, Anthony Weaver, and Mike McCarthy. On Saturday, January 24, 2026, the Steelers decided that McCarthy was their guy moving forward. The fellow Yinzer, McCarthy, is an offensive head coach and is seen as a quarterback guru. He's coached the likes of Joe Montana, Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, and Dak Prescott. McCarthy has typically inherited a great quarterback room during his career, so Pittsburgh will be a new challenge. 

The Steelers don't current have any elite quarterbacks on their roster, but they do have hope in one guy: Will Howard. Howard was a sixth-round pick by the team in the 2025 NFL Draft who played for the Ohio State Buckeyes where he won a National Championship. Most believed that the Buckeyes won despite Howard. However, former NFL head coach, Jon Gruden endorsed Howard in his QB school. 

Though the idea of Howard is intriguing, we haven't seen him on the field at the professional level yet. He was injured during training camp last season and was unavailable for the preseason games. Despite this, there is still faith in him, and McCarthy's hiring is a big reason why. Former Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger recently spoke about Howard on his podcast, Footbahlin With Ben Roethlisberger. He made a great point about Howard having an advantage with the new head coach. 

"If it's a defensive coach, if it's Brian Flores or whoever, and they're not sure who their coordinator is, and they're not sure what the offense is gonna be quite yet, maybe some ideas. You've got to wait a little longer..." Roethlisberger said. "I feel pretty confident Will Howard has the playbook." 

With McCarthy, a quarterback guru, and the upcoming draft class featuring a weak quarterback class, Howard should be the priority. The Steelers will likely wait to see if Rodgers decides to play football in 2026. 

However, until then, Howard must be the guy. He could very well amount to nothing being just a sixth-round pick, but starting Howard is a big picture move for the Steelers in 2026.

Steelers Starting Howard In 2026 Is A Win-Win

The Steelers have had a new Week 1 starting quarterback for five straight seasons. Rodgers could potentially break that streak, but let's assume not for a second. If Rodgers isn't back, that leaves both Howard and Mason Rudolph. Regardless of whether or not the Steelers go out and acquire another QB this offseason, Howard has already been praised by Chairman Art Rooney II and now McCarthy. The Steelers can't lose with this situation if he ends up being the starter. Howard has the opportunity to break the Steelers out of this curse of mediocrity, and there's plenty of reason to believe he can actually do it.

If Howard comes in under the McCarthy system and plays well, and the Steelers make the playoffs -- even win a playoff game, great. The Steelers potentially have a long-term solution at the game's most crucial position. However, if Howard plays like a sixth-round pick and absolutely bombs his opportunity, the Steelers would likely have a terrible season and be in a great spot to draft their next franchise quarterback in a loaded 2027 class. 

The latter is not ideal as the team hasn't had a losing season in 23 years. They aren't a franchise that typically tanks. Howard coming in however, and showing why the Steelers drafted him is certainly the preferred route. The Steelers have a win-win opportunity on their hands; it's up to them to take it. 

What do you think? Should the Steelers invest in Will Howard? Should they bring Aaron Rodgers back for one more season? Let us know in the comments below.

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