The Pittsburgh Steelers are soon going to find themselves in a roster dilemma at the quarterback position. Since the team drafted Will Howard and signed Aaron Rodgers, we all assumed Howard would be the team's third quarterback. That should still be the case. But Skylar Thompson seems determined to throw a monkey wrench into the whole operation (in the best possible way).
Thompson has been impressive in his first two preseason games—completing 30 of 43 passes for 346 yards (8.0 yards per attempt) and three touchdowns. The veteran's performance nets him a 107.3 passer rating entering the preseason finale.
But there's simply no room for Thompson on the roster.
Keeping the 23-year-old rookie in Howard still makes the most sense. Even if the team decided to go with Thompson, the only time he would see the field would be if an injury occurred to both Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph. Fortunately, the Steelers may have just found the perfect trade partner.
The Pittsburgh Steelers should trade QB Skylar Thompson to the Indianapolis Colts
Following Week 2 of the preseason, the Indianapolis Colts made the controversial decision to name Daniel Jones as their starting quarterback, and they have no intention of reverting to 2023 first-round pick Anthony Richardson. With jobs on the line in Indy, head coach Shane Steichen and GM Chris Ballard weren't willing to go with the more raw and polarizing QB in Richardson when they needed to win football games.
While Richardson is currently listed as the team's No. 2 quarterback, trade speculation is already swirling, and Richardson could be on his way out. It makes sense for the Colts to pursue a quarterback who more closely resembles Jones' play style in the event of an injury.
If Daniel Jones were to go down this year, Steichen needs an accurate and decisive QB who could run his offense. Skylar Thompson could be that guy. The 2022 seventh-round pick has earned the opportunity to be a team's second-string quarterback, and the Colts would be the perfect trade partner.
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Though getting a trade done between the Steelers and Colts may require Indianapolis to move on from Anthony Richardson first, that's a move we could be headed toward. Considering the makeup of Pittsburgh's quarterback room and knowing the situation, general manager Omar Khan would practically give Thompson away at this point (or risk being cut outright).
This means that the Colts would only need to shell out a future seventh-round pick, a late-round conditional pick, or a future Day 3 pick swap to execute this trade.
The Pittsburgh Steelers could put the ball in the Colts' court after the Daniel Jones news and Anthony Richardson trade speculation. Skylar Thompson is the backup quarterback that Indy doesn't even know that they need.