The Pittsburgh Steelers may be preparing to solve their quarterback problem by refusing to solve it at all. Aaron Rodgers is first, Mason Rudolph is second, and Will Howard and Drew Allar are the two developmental bets behind them. Four quarterbacks do not fit neatly on a 53-man roster, but Gerry Dulac believes Pittsburgh is increasingly willing to accept the inconvenience rather than make a decision it could regret for years.
Jordan Perez / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Drew Allar throws on the run during a training camp practice in 2026.
That would be a notable departure from the usual August arithmetic. A fourth quarterback occupies a roster spot that could go to a defensive back, special-teams contributor or offensive lineman. The Steelers, however, are staring at a position where one premature cut could hurt considerably more than losing a sixth cornerback.
Pittsburgh's initial depth chart lists Rodgers, Rudolph, Howard and Allar in that order. Rodgers has already said 2026 will be his final NFL season, while Rudolph is playing on the second year of the two-year contract he signed in March 2025. Pittsburgh therefore has a very obvious question waiting beyond this season: who exactly is supposed to take the first snap of the post-Rodgers era?
Dulac believes the organization may be unwilling to answer that question after three preseason games. During a recent appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, he explained why he thinks the Steelers are leaning toward keeping all four quarterbacks and could even try to retain Rudolph after his contract expires. Dulac had already reported earlier in August that carrying four quarterbacks was becoming a growing possibility for Pittsburgh.
“Aaron Rodgers is going to retire after the year. Mason Rudolph’s a free agent. Now, I would expect them to re-sign him… But this is why I think, Rich, they are going to keep four quarterbacks. I think it’s going to be an organizational decision… Three games is probably not enough time to decide when you have two young guys. The last thing this team wants to do is continue that revolving door at quarterback… I think they are leaning right now toward keeping four,” Dulac said.
The “organizational decision” portion of Dulac's assessment stretches beyond whichever young quarterback looks better during one August stretch. Mike McCarthy can evaluate how Howard and Allar process his offense, respond to corrections and perform in games, but Pittsburgh also has to consider contracts, development timelines, waiver exposure and a 2027 depth chart with no established starter waiting for Rodgers to leave.
Howard and Allar arrived through different regimes and at different points in their development. Howard was a sixth-round selection in 2025 and spent his rookie preseason sidelined by a hand injury. Allar arrived with McCarthy's staff as the 76th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, giving Pittsburgh a larger draft investment but no guarantee that he will become the better professional quarterback.
Their first opportunity against another team did little to make the decision easier. Howard completed seven of nine passes for 86 yards against the Green Bay Packers and directed an 80-yard two-minute touchdown drive. Allar followed with 153 passing yards, two touchdowns and another score on the ground, giving Pittsburgh two encouraging young performances instead of clean separation.
Jordan Perez / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Will Howard fires a deep pass during the first day of training camp in 2026.
A preseason box score cannot settle a succession plan. Howard and Allar are playing against personnel combinations that will change dramatically once the regular season begins, and neither is being asked to solve the type of defensive game plan Rodgers will see on Sundays. Pittsburgh can learn plenty without pretending three exhibition games represent a complete NFL audition.
The alternative carries its own problem. To move Howard or Allar from the training-camp roster to the practice squad, Pittsburgh would first have to expose the player to waivers. If he cleared and later joined the practice squad, another club could still sign him to its active roster, turning a roster squeeze into a gamble the Steelers cannot control.
Pittsburgh has already spent months rebuilding mechanics, teaching a new offense and giving both quarterbacks repetitions designed to reveal what each might become. Cutting one because the calendar demands a decision would turn an evaluation problem into an asset-management gamble, especially if McCarthy still believes both are worth developing.
A full season of evaluation becomes easier if Rudolph remains the veteran bridge in the room. Pittsburgh would not have to force Howard or Allar into a starting job in 2027 simply to learn whether he can handle it, and Dulac's expectation that Rudolph could be re-signed would give the Steelers another layer of protection.
Steelers May Decide One Extra Roster Spot Is Worth The Price
Keeping four quarterbacks would create consequences elsewhere. Somebody useful would lose a roster spot, and the fourth quarterback could spend many Sundays inactive while another position deals with injuries or special-teams needs. NFL roster math makes every extra luxury expensive.
Quarterback is also the position where Pittsburgh has spent the post-Roethlisberger years paying for uncertainty. The Steelers have cycled through veteran solutions, short-term plans and developmental hopes without finding a permanent answer. Dulac's point is that the organization may finally prefer too many options to another offseason spent shopping for one.
Rudolph fits that thinking differently than Howard and Allar. He has started NFL games, knows Pittsburgh and offers stability if Rodgers retires and neither young quarterback is ready. Keeping him beyond this season could make the 2026 room less of a temporary traffic jam and more of a deliberate bridge into 2027.
Two preseason games remain for the picture to change. Howard could separate, Allar could stumble, an injury could alter the math or another team could make Pittsburgh an offer that changes the equation. Dulac is describing where he believes the Steelers are leaning now, not announcing a final roster.
Three preseason games may be enough to cut dozens of players around the league, but Pittsburgh may decide they are nowhere near enough to choose which part of its future to throw away.
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