QB Dwayne Haskins
I’d be lying if I said that Dwayne Haskins’ status as a former first-round draft choice didn’t play any factor in Pittsburgh’s decision to potentially keep him around. In fact, that’s probably why the Steelers signed him so early in the offseason despite his terrible 2020 performance and the fact that he was cut from Washington due to character concerns.
Even though the Steelers reportedly had a first-round grade on Haskins coming out of Ohio State in 2019, don’t automatically assume that his job is safe. During minicamp, Haskins was reportedly less than impressive. While it was noted that he had a strong arm in practice, there wasn’t anything else worth mentioning, and he looked very bland overall.
Haskins’ biggest competition for the number three quarterback job is veteran Josh Dobbs. Dobbs has just 17 career pass attempts to Haskins’ 444, but that added experience may not prove to be enough. Matt Canada recently took over as offensive coordinator of the Steelers, and Dobbs could be an added tool to his offense.
We know how much Canada likes to run play-action and pre-snap motion. Dobbs could be a gadget player who could come in and keep the defense on its heels. Dobbs is also making more money than Haskins on their one-year deals ($140,000 more in base salary), so that’s also worth noting. Keep an eye on this battle during training camp.