Going into the summer, everyone paying attention to the Pittsburgh Steelers knew Aaron Rodgers and Drew Allar were two quarterbacks set to make the roster. Barring injury, Mason Rudolph and Will Howard would need to prove their worth to stick around.
Throughout training camp and the preseason, things got bumpy along the way, but the Steelers decided to hang on to all four quarterbacks.
It wasn't much of a surprise when final roster decisions had to be made. Pittsburgh has some interesting circumstances happening on the team, and Mike McCarthy loves the position they play. With the club still trying to locate a successor to Rodgers, there is an obvious reason why they held onto an extra signal-caller. This was more of a decision that will affect next year's roster.
You can debate if Howard or Allar should be Rodgers' heir apparent, but the truth is neither could turn out to be the answer.
Howard didn't play well this preseason, which led to him stumbling his way onto this season's roster. Allar, on the other hand, did perform above expectations. His raw talent is intriguing, and it could lead to him eventually pushing for a starting spot at the position.
Pittsburgh Steelers post-Aaron Rodgers plan is why they kept four quarterbacks on the roster
When it comes down to it, this roster decision has to do with next summer. Holding onto Allar and Howard provides two immediate options to replace Rodgers next year. No, neither of them should be considered slam-dunk options for the Steelers moving forward, but you could sell your fans on one of those two names taking over that job, even if it's not too believable.
After his struggles in the preseason, no one should anticipate Howard's ceiling as much more than a backup or fringe starter in the NFL. He seemed to be the odd man out if the club was making its roster decisions solely on this season. Keeping the second-year quarterback around gives the Steelers another option to compete at training camp and push for a bigger role on the team.
Allar was always a lock to make the team out of roster cuts, but his future with the team will be interesting. You could see the talent on display during the preseason, and it will be enticing to see if he can take another step forward in his progression after Rodgers hangs up his cleats.
Allar has everything you could ask for in a potential franchise quarterback; it'll be up to McCarthy to unlock that talent.
At the end of the day, the Steelers have four quarterbacks behind Rodgers this year, so they are set up for next season. Howard will battle with Allar for positioning on the depth chart. Perhaps one of those two will be the starter, but it's realistic to assume Pittsburgh will either trade for someone, sign a free agent, or draft a quarterback. It will lead to an interesting offseason in 2027.
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