One of the most exciting aspects of the NFL's preseason is getting to see young players get real live reps, as fans may not get to see them play much, if at all, in the regular season. That is especially true of late-round picks, and even more so for quarterbacks. The Pittsburgh Steelers were hoping to get 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard plenty of reps as the No. 3 QB, but a hand injury could keep him out until the regular season.
In his absence, Skylar Thompson moved up to third on the depth chart after being passed up by Howard early in training camp. The former Miami Dolphins seventh-round pick has struggled mightily in his limited playing time at the NFL level, with just one touchdown pass despite 138 career pass attempts.
It seemed like a foregone conclusion that Thompson would end up either on the practice squad, if he was even kept at all, but his performance in the Steelers' preseason win over the Jacksonville Jaguars was too good to dismiss.
Pittsburgh Steelers could have a tough decision coming with Skylar Thompson
Thompson had a phenomenal stat line against the Jaguars, finishing 20 of 28 passing for 233 yards and three touchdowns. The stats speak for themselves, but how he looked while putting up those numbers is far more important.
Preseason games are hard to use as an evaluation tool due to the wide range of talent that comes on and off the field throughout the game. A combination of starters and backups, or even backups and third-string guys, makes it difficult to properly evaluate a player's performance. Luckily for Thompson, he displayed the same skills throughout the game that made his Steelers debut so impressive.
He was confident working from the pocket, protected the football well, and made some legitemately impressive throws to help move the offense downfield. He was perfect in the Steelers two-minute drill to finish the first half, dicing up the Jacksonville secondary and connecting with multiple receivers for big plays.
This was the best he has looked at any point (preseason or otherwise) in his career up to this point, and with Howard still nursing his hand injury, it could force the Steelers into a difficult choice. Do they keep Thompson as the No. 3 QB even after Howard is cleared to return? Or do they roll with Howard after his impressive training camp?
Ultimately, I believe Howard still has the inside track to be the third QB in 2025. Thompson is much less likely to be poached off the practice squad if they were to cut him from the 53-man roster, and Howard has the advantage of a cheap four-year rookie contract. Still, if he keeps performing like this, perhaps another team will come calling to add him as a real backup.