As the saying famously attributed to the late and great John Madden goes, "if you've got two quarterbacks, you have none." Just don't tell that to Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy.
Aaron Rodgers' decision to return to the Steelers for one final ride has created a crowded depth chart at football's most important position. They suddenly possess twice as many options as most teams usually carry (two). Some, namely McCarthy, see this as a good problem to have, though others might understandably look at the situation with a glass-half-empty outlook.
McCarthy clearly believes his plethora of (uninspiring) options is a recipe for success, yet should he? The one-time Super Bowl champion proudly flaunted the fact that the Steelers currently boast a quartet of signal-callers during a recent press conference.
"We've definitely got four that we love, I can say that," McCarthy told reporters. "You always have to develop the room. That's always been the approach. We're hoping that [general manager] Omar [Khan] can get the roster expanded to 55 and we can keep four. It's a really good room. This is a good place to be, having four guys that can play."
Mike McCarthy’s Pittsburgh Steelers QB comments raise valid concerns
There's a lot to unpack with McCarthy's comments, so let's go sentence by sentence.
Yes, building a competitive group of passers is imperative. At what cost, though? Is keeping the foursome of Rodgers, Mason Rudolph, 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard, and rookie Drew Allar on the active roster worth making sacrifices elsewhere?
One way or another, the Steelers will have to trim other parts of their squad for Rodgers to have three backups. Hanging onto Rudolph, Howard, and Allar will come at the expense of the greater collective. Whether it's from the offensive side of the ball, defense, or special teams, one of the three units must take a hit.
Moreover, can all four players step in under center when called upon, as McCarthy expressed? The 42-year-old Rodgers can, even at this diminished stage of his Hall of Fame career. However, the jury's still out on Rudolph and Howard, and Allar's just entering the NFL.
Rudolph's had his moments, but he's a middling second-stringer at best, and the numbers bear that out. The veteran has a 64.4 career completion percentage and 84.6 passer rating, both of which were at or below the league average in 2025.
Howard has fans within the Steelers' organization, and that shouldn't be overlooked. Be that as it may, he hasn't shown anything at the pro level to this point — literally. The Ohio State product missed all of last preseason due to a broken bone in his throwing hand, so we haven't seen him in action.
Time will tell if McCarthy's confidence proves prosperous or futile. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh's abundance of QBs raises more questions than answers, including uncertainty surrounding Rudolph's outlook.
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