Round 6.185 QB Will Howard, Ohio State

[franco>madden]

https://youtu.be/Fw5-TP1pxp8?si=bLOFg0ryAVIuL4t2

Here is a great video of Howard in the Gruden QB School. The guy seems impressive in how he picks up coaching.

Thankfully he'll be picking up from Mike Tomlin and Arthur Smith, two of the great minds of offensive football in our lifetimes.

[StillerDownSouth]

What if he impresses in camp, and turns out to be for the Steelers what Brock Purdy turned out to be for the 49ers, or Dak Prescott turned out to be for the Cowboys, do they still take a QB high in 2026?

[Havoc]

What if he impresses in camp, and turns out to be for the Steelers what Brock Purdy turned out to be for the 49ers, or Dak Prescott turned out to be for the Cowboys, do they still take a QB high in 2026?

That's the concern and the risk of taking him.

Purdy and Prescott, good and sometimes better than good but not great enough to get their teams over the hump.

I want to take a QB high in 2026 no matter what and let the chips fall.

[franco32]

I've gone back and watched a LOT of film on Howard this week. He's a bit of a head scratcher. I'm not sure if I can quite figure him out. A lot of people say he's high floor/low ceiling. I think he's low floor/high ceiling after this evaluation.

Why? Because there are times I see the arm talent. There are some deep intermediate throws to the sideline that are really zipped. High caliber elite NFL throws. A QB with that kind of arm should make deep throws easily. Yet, Howard often underthrows his deep throws. Now I can't tell if that is ON PURPOSE because the coaches know the elite WRs are going to make the play and tell him to do that or if he lacks the arm on deep throws.

What I do know is the kid does have talent. His deep intermediate passing (middle of the field and sideline) is great. He's quite accurate and leads his receivers on shorter routes really really well. He's quite decisive - although that sometimes bites him. He'll sometimes fail to see the dropping LBs in zone and can put the ball in harms way because of that.

Overall, I think the kid can play in the NFL. Mental toughness is definitely there and you want that in a winner. 6th round is very good value for him. Can he be a franchise QB? I honestly think that will almost ALL depend on his deep balls. If his deep balls sail in the NFL then safeties will play up and the middle of the field gets crowded. If he really does possess the arm talent, and OSU was just instructing him to throw deep balls safely, then he can make some noise in this league.

Thoughts?

[PennyBacker]

Considering that all draft picks are a roll of the dice, to get a player like Will Howard in the 6th round is exciting. People have mentioned that he looked like a first round pick after beating the eventual CFP runner up TCU in the Big XII Title game in '22. He won the starting job that year and closed the season strong.

He looks to have got a bit of the short end of the stick with respect to Avery Johnson's status on campus after '23. Johnson was capable of providing an explosive running element to the Wildcats' offense, and fans there were ready to see their own version of the exciting running quarterback. So Howard hit the portal after the '23 season, rather than sit around and endure unnecessary criticism.

His transfer to the Buckeyes could not have worked out better for him in terms of how he got to end his college career, and now the Steelers have acquired a player who has overcome adversity, but is also trending upwards with no real pressure to immediately perform. Fantastic 6th round selection.

[955876]

I want to take a QB high in 2026 no matter what and let the chips fall.

By high do you mean the mid-20s?
This team will fuck this up on their way to getting smoked in the playoffs again.

Dunce needs to realize this team's deficiency isn't the players on the field it is the coaches on the sidelines.

[K_C_]

I want to take a QB high in 2026 no matter what and let the chips fall.

By high do you mean the mid-20s?
This team will fuck this up on their way to getting smoked in the playoffs again.

Dunce needs to realize this team's deficiency isn't the players on the field it is the coaches on the sidelines.

Unless the Steelers are drafting in the top 15 in the 2026 draft, which means they had a disappointing year and Tomlin's NHALS has ended, they will not take a QB in the first round.

This is easy. Mason is a much better QB than Mitch Trubisky who was the starter at the beginning of the 2022 season. Trubisky was so bad to start that season that it looked like he was point shaving or throwing games. Kenny was nothing special when he took over, but he was still a huge improvement over Mitch. Mason will play the Mitch role this year and will get his chance to be the starter all year, if he plays well enough.

I don't believe Mason will play all that well and at some point, probably nearly halfway through the season, Will Howard will get his chance.

If Howard shows promise even in a similar manner that Kenny did his rookie year (Pickett takes a lot of shit and it's deserved, but he showed promise his rookie year) then the Steelers will ride Howard to start the 2026 season and the Steelers will continue to look to upgrade the defensive front seven early next April.

[Dan Smith--BYU]

"I want to take a QB high in 2026 no matter what and let the chips fall."

Not seeing the stellar 2026 class that everyone is talking about. Manning may not come out until 2027. Besides Nussmeier and (possibly) Sellers where is the obvious 1st round talent? I'm far from convinced on Allar or Klubnick or the UCLA kid.

This whole idea of tanking for prospects never really works out.

The nostrum that the best time to take a QB is when you don't need one is correct. Someone should have told Colbert in 2017. But then he would have taken Trubinsky over Mahomes.

[Gonzo]

my daughter is at Ohio State and I have watched Howard a lot.
I say ... meh
If ... he was on a complete, well-coached and talented team maybe he could man the spot well-enough with some time
But he is not in that spot -- none of those 3 elements exist.
So ... if he has to start he will fail. Because they will do what they do and he is not the QB capable of elevating them above their own faults. More times than not - he will not make the plays needed when they fall behind 14 early or at the end of a TOP snooze-fest.

If this staff stays and without outlier talent at positions other than QB -- they need a QB that can make Special plays to save them.
There is zero chance they wont continue to try and win 13-10.
and if I was to be wrong and he could be a consistently good to great QB, we will never know as he will never be given the chance.

If Tomln stays around for a while -- we have to have a Special QB and a solid D or it aint going to happen

[franco32]

my daughter is at Ohio State and I have watched Howard a lot.
I say ... meh
If ... he was on a complete, well-coached and talented team maybe he could man the spot well-enough with some time
But he is not in that spot -- none of those 3 elements exist.
So ... if he has to start he will fail. Because they will do what they do and he is not the QB capable of elevating them above their own faults. More times than not - he will not make the plays needed when they fall behind 14 early or at the end of a TOP snooze-fest.

If this staff stays and without outlier talent at positions other than QB -- they need a QB that can make Special plays to save them.
There is zero chance they wont continue to try and win 13-10.
and if I was to be wrong and he could be a consistently good to great QB, we will never know as he will never be given the chance.

If Tomln stays around for a while -- we have to have a Special QB and a solid D or it aint going to happen

Do Will Howard basically needs a situation like Brock Purdy to be able to succeed? You are probably right. Btw, it took a HOF QB and an all-time great D to overcome Tomlin's ineptitude and win a SB.

[Gonzo]

my daughter is at Ohio State and I have watched Howard a lot.
I say ... meh
If ... he was on a complete, well-coached and talented team maybe he could man the spot well-enough with some time
But he is not in that spot -- none of those 3 elements exist.
So ... if he has to start he will fail. Because they will do what they do and he is not the QB capable of elevating them above their own faults. More times than not - he will not make the plays needed when they fall behind 14 early or at the end of a TOP snooze-fest.

If this staff stays and without outlier talent at positions other than QB -- they need a QB that can make Special plays to save them.
There is zero chance they wont continue to try and win 13-10.
and if I was to be wrong and he could be a consistently good to great QB, we will never know as he will never be given the chance.

If Tomln stays around for a while -- we have to have a Special QB and a solid D or it aint going to happen

Do Will Howard basically needs a situation like Brock Purdy to be able to succeed? You are probably right. Btw, it took a HOF QB and an all-time great D to overcome Tomlin's ineptitude and win a SB.

i dont think he has the poise and decision making of purdy and he will be under more pressure in the NFL as at OSU he was surrounded by extreme talent relative to opponents... but yes in the sense that Purdy was placed with a very talented team that ran the ball well and a creative coach willing to adapt

[jebrick]

I do not think the talent at tOSU carried Howard ( unlike Leonard at ND). He is not a frachise QB but will be able to run A. Smiths 90's offense.

[Gonzo]

I do not think the talent at tOSU carried Howard ( unlike Leonard at ND). He is not a frachise QB but will be able to run A. Smiths 90's offense.

the problem isnt running a pre-historic offense most of the time -- his problem will be when the steelers ultimately ask the QB to bail them out.
I agree that if you want NHALS with a 40% play-off make rate and first round shellacking -- he can get that job done. I was answering if he is like Purdy and/or has a chance to be a franchise QB and lead this version of the steelers to more success

and I dont think they "carried" him -- more that they allowed him mostly to play a controlled game ... I believe he will struggle with more pressrue and tighter windows ... but who doesnt I guess

[jebrick]

I do not think the talent at tOSU carried Howard ( unlike Leonard at ND). He is not a frachise QB but will be able to run A. Smiths 90's offense.

the problem isnt running a pre-historic offense most of the time -- his problem will be when the steelers ultimately ask the QB to bail them out.
I agree that if you want NHALS with a 40% play-off make rate and first round shellacking -- he can get that job done. I was answering if he is like Purdy and/or has a chance to be a franchise QB and lead this version of the steelers to more success

and I dont think they "carried" him -- more that they allowed him mostly to play a controlled game ... I believe he will struggle with more pressrue and tighter windows ... but who doesnt I guess

You do not draft those types in the 6th round so I'm not expecting it.

[Gonzo]

I do not think the talent at tOSU carried Howard ( unlike Leonard at ND). He is not a frachise QB but will be able to run A. Smiths 90's offense.

the problem isnt running a pre-historic offense most of the time -- his problem will be when the steelers ultimately ask the QB to bail them out.
I agree that if you want NHALS with a 40% play-off make rate and first round shellacking -- he can get that job done. I was answering if he is like Purdy and/or has a chance to be a franchise QB and lead this version of the steelers to more success

and I dont think they "carried" him -- more that they allowed him mostly to play a controlled game ... I believe he will struggle with more pressrue and tighter windows ... but who doesnt I guess

You do not draft those types in the 6th round so I'm not expecting it.

so … we agree he isn’t going to be a top notch QB but he can manage a team to a few more winning seasons and playoff losses. rudolph can do that.

[Havoc]

We had a QB drafted # 1 overall and a QB drafted # 11 overall at the position when we got our 6 Lombardi's

A beast of a QB prospect would make the team interesting again.

[anpsteel]

Pretty much no matter what happens with Will Howard this season, They are going to make a move in the first round to draft a quarterback next season

And if by some miraculous stroke of luck, they end up with two starting capable quarterbacks

Well, that’s a good problem

And one of them will be traded with one to two years left on their contract

Edit: I suppose if Howard ends up starting half the games or more, due to injury, and balls out, I suppose that’s a scenario where maybe they don’t take a QB next year
But that is so unlikely you can’t plan for it

[bradshaw2ben]

What if he impresses in camp, and turns out to be for the Steelers what Brock Purdy turned out to be for the 49ers, or Dak Prescott turned out to be for the Cowboys, do they still take a QB high in 2026?

I think he'd have to be close to Ben in 2005 or at least one of the two you mentioned for them to not take another QB in 2026. There's basically no downside to taking another QB if you're not 1000% sure. You can trade one of them and get real return.

[franco32]

What if he impresses in camp, and turns out to be for the Steelers what Brock Purdy turned out to be for the 49ers, or Dak Prescott turned out to be for the Cowboys, do they still take a QB high in 2026?

I think he'd have to be close to Ben in 2005 or at least one of the two you mentioned for them to not take another QB in 2026. There's basically no downside to taking another QB if you're not 1000% sure. You can trade one of them and get real return.

If Howard surprises and balls out though, I think they might refrain from trading up. So they may get a QB, but not the guy they really want. It would be a Steelers thing to do.

[Stallworth16]

One thing I like about Howard, is he was considered a running QB before he established himself as a passing QB. I was disappointed to lose Fields for his dual abilities.

Remember both Bradshaw and Ben were mobile QBs coming out of college, and difficult to bring down in the pocket.

[bradshaw2ben]

Unless they trade for Cousins or the unlikely event of Rodgers signing comes to fruition, Howard will definitely not start the season as a starter and will also be extremely likely to see action eventually in the season. Rudolph has the NFL backup profile of starting out fine and getting worse as time goes on. People are like, "Well they went 8-8 with him at QB" but they had a much better defense then AND Duck Hodges gave them some mojo for a couple of games when Rudolph was down and out.

[tbsteel]

Unless they trade for Cousins or the unlikely event of Rodgers signing comes to fruition, Howard will definitely not start the season as a starter and will also be extremely likely to see action eventually in the season. Rudolph has the NFL backup profile of starting out fine and getting worse as time goes on. People are like, "Well they went 8-8 with him at QB" but they had a much better defense then AND Duck Hodges gave them some mojo for a couple of games when Rudolph was down and out.

I'm not sure why everyone is all worked up about Will Howard. He needs to avoid the keg stands and he's got bigger tits than Tomlin.

[franco32]

If only Will could be a little more sculpted like Brady Quinn



Will's slight baby fat is the least of my concerns with him. I want to see how he handles pressure and how well he pushes the ball downfield in the NFL.

[Ice]

Unless they trade for Cousins or the unlikely event of Rodgers signing comes to fruition, Howard will definitely not start the season as a starter and will also be extremely likely to see action eventually in the season. Rudolph has the NFL backup profile of starting out fine and getting worse as time goes on. People are like, "Well they went 8-8 with him at QB" but they had a much better defense then AND Duck Hodges gave them some mojo for a couple of games when Rudolph was down and out.

I'm not sure why everyone is all worked up about Will Howard. He needs to avoid the keg stands and he's got bigger tits than Tomlin.

That photoshop was definitely made by a bitter scUM fan with too much time on their hands and problems letting go.

[tbsteel]

Unless they trade for Cousins or the unlikely event of Rodgers signing comes to fruition, Howard will definitely not start the season as a starter and will also be extremely likely to see action eventually in the season. Rudolph has the NFL backup profile of starting out fine and getting worse as time goes on. People are like, "Well they went 8-8 with him at QB" but they had a much better defense then AND Duck Hodges gave them some mojo for a couple of games when Rudolph was down and out.

I'm not sure why everyone is all worked up about Will Howard. He needs to avoid the keg stands and he's got bigger tits than Tomlin.

That photoshop was definitely made by a bitter scUM fan with too much time on their hands and problems letting go.

This is a photo from Steelers.com. It's legit.

[Orlaco]

It's weird the Steelers picked Howard.

One of my best friends is an OSU fan and ALL YEAR LONG he called Howard; "The Next Ben Roethlisberger."

Now that he's a Steeler my friend is already proclaiming he was right and that Howard will prove to be the next Ben Roethlisberger.

I try to explain that dude is a FUCKING IDIOT and Howard will, in fact, not be The Next Ben Roethiisberger.....but it sure as fuck would be nice if I had to admit I was wrong and Howard became a star.

You’re not very good at recognizing your mistakes in predicting quarterbacks\ futures of the NFL.

You called Ben Roethlisberger the next Ryan Leaf and you supported Kenny Pickett.


If you’re honest, you can’t tell me I’m wrong.

[Thrillsseeker]

It's weird the Steelers picked Howard.

One of my best friends is an OSU fan and ALL YEAR LONG he called Howard; "The Next Ben Roethlisberger."

Now that he's a Steeler my friend is already proclaiming he was right and that Howard will prove to be the next Ben Roethlisberger.

I try to explain that dude is a FUCKING IDIOT and Howard will, in fact, not be The Next Ben Roethiisberger.....but it sure as fuck would be nice if I had to admit I was wrong and Howard became a star.

You’re not very good at recognizing your mistakes in predicting quarterbacks\ futures of the NFL.

You called Ben Roethlisberger the next Ryan Leaf and you supported Kenny Pickett.


If you’re honest, you can’t tell me I’m wrong.

[PennyBacker]

Howard looks to have a lot lining up for him right now in terms of having his best chance for success.

Many professionals thrive on templates, or well executed examples to follow. With an almost 20yr vet in Aaron Rodgers as QB1 for the Steelers, it's hard to imagine a better example for how to become an NFL pocket passer.

[Thrillsseeker]

Howard looks to have a lot lining up for him right now in terms of having his best chance for success.

Many professionals thrive on templates, or well executed examples to follow. With an almost 20yr vet in Aaron Rodgers as QB1 for the Steelers, it's hard to imagine a better example for how to become an NFL pocket passer.

Told my buddy that yesterday and said I hope he develops but told him to slow down calling him the next Terry Bradshaw 4x SB winning QB in the Burgh.

[955876]

Howard looks to have a lot lining up for him right now in terms of having his best chance for success.

If you don’t have a boat, rent one. Then drive it far out to sea or even out to the middle of a lake.

Wrap a chain around your body then attach a couple of very heavy weights to that chain.

Now jump in.

You have about as much chance of success as a QB does in Jibba Jabber’s purposely anemic offensive “scheme”.