Steelers Offer Clarity On Plan For Rookie QB Drew Allar

When the Pittsburgh Steelers made the decision to draft quarterback prospect Drew Allar out of Penn State in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, naturally questions emerged. At that time, the Steelers had not received confirmation from Aaron Rodgers on what he was going to do during the 2026 season. Ultimately, Rodgers has now provided clarity, stating that 2026 will be his final ride in the NFL in the Steel City.

Rodgers hopes to build on the 10-7 campaign that culminated in an AFC North title, but also left an awful taste in the mouths of Steeler Nation after a 24-point home playoff loss. Now, with Mike McCarthy in town and reunited with Rodgers for one last ride, many are hopeful he can deliver some vintage moments. Another exciting aspect is another year of Rodgers mentoring Will Howard and now Allar. Mason Rudolph will fight to remain the backup, but the focus beyond 2026 shifts to Howard and Allar.

Steeler Nation is eager to figure out who the future of this franchise under center is going to be. The Steelers invested in two low-risk options through the 2025 and 2026 drafts with Howard and Allar. Now, with McCarthy, a known quarterback whisperer himself, perhaps he can develop one or both of them into reliable backups or even starting-caliber quarterbacks in this league. Steelers insider Mark Kaboly gave Steelers fans a glimpse into Allar's development when he spoke on 93.7 The Fan on Wednesday.

"Well, I think what we saw was a lot of reps during rookie minicamp when he was the only quarterback there," Kaboly said. "He got 60 or 70 snaps in that two-day span. It pretty much tailed off during the past three or four weeks because he was number four on the depth chart. They were worried about getting the rest of those QBs up to speed, especially Will Howard taking in a lot of those reps."

Obviously, whenever Pittsburgh decided to draft Allar, they knew he was going to be a project. It was reported that McCarthy is breaking down and re-teaching Allar's mechanics, so naturally hearing that he hasn't been impressive yet is to be expected and not indicative of his future ceiling or potential. 

It's simply another chapter in the Allar storyline in Pittsburgh.

"Now this week, there is only Drew Allar and Will Howard at the OTAs because all the veterans are pretty much gone," Kaboly said. "Even next week, which is a big week even though OTAs are over, rookies will be in the building and still getting worked on. As for how he looks, he doesn't get tons of reps. He looks like a rookie, man. He looks just like a rookie trying to learn the playbook, trying to fix some issues with his feet and mechanics. I still think, for me, it's a redshirt year. Give him a redshirt year, sort of the plan they wanted to have for Will Howard last year before he got hurt. The redshirt year and jump off next year and have a legit chance to start. They'll never admit that, but I do think that's the plan."

Steelers Seem Hopeful Allar Will Be Ready By 2027

Kaboly believes the Steelers would never publicly state this, but their hope is that Allar can essentially redshirt in 2026 and put himself in a position where competing for the starting job no longer sounds laughable.

If that's the hope for Allar, then it would also be the hope for Howard to a degree. Pittsburgh's new regime drafted Allar, but they didn't draft Howard themselves, so naturally they'll be more tied to Allar. However, Howard has continued to impress, and the 2026 season, with those two quarterbacks competing in practice, should help set up the future of the position.

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