PITTSBURGH — The prospective passer strolled through the Pittsburgh Steelers facility with quarterbacks coach Tom Arth just 10 days ago as the team made final tweaks to its draft board.
It was April 15, the last day that NFL teams were permitted to host pre-draft visitors. And as it turned out, this one would be significant. The Steelers had done extensive research on this year’s class, with the plan of adding a mid-round QB to join 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard on a depth chart that likely will also feature Aaron Rodgers.
As the fourth and final quarterback to visit with the Steelers in Pittsburgh, it was now Penn State quarterback Drew Allar’s turn to answer an important question.
“How’s that going to go, coming into a room with Will Howard?” Arth asked.
“I got to know Will a little bit and he’s a great guy,” Arth remembers Allar answering with excitement. “He’s a great player. I’d love to be able to work with him.”
On Friday evening, Arth’s hypothetical became a reality. After another potential target (Carson Beck) went off the board, Joey Porter Jr. and Sr. stepped on stage in front of hundreds of thousands of Terrible Towel twirlers to deliver the news: The Steelers had used their first of three third-round picks on Allar — a decision met with a polarizing response.
Let the Howard versus Allar competition begin.
While many inside the Steelers’ building have a level of optimism that Rodgers will lead the team onto the field in Week 1, the team’s decision makers have now created a fascinating dynamic in their quarterback room. The two former Big Ten passers are now connected — like it or not — and will become entangled in a competition that could play out for years.
“I think it’s about pulling for each other first and foremost,” Allar said. “You want the team to be successful every Sunday. You want to go out and win every game. That’s the ultimate goal, and that’s my ultimate goal. For me, it’s just about putting my head down and focusing on what I can control — my effort and attitude each day, and the amount of preparation I could put into going into each day. And I know everybody in the quarterback room is going to do the same thing.”
The competition that was established Friday night will continue to play out in a variety of forms — from training camps in Latrobe to preseason games and eventually full stadiums. It will be argued endlessly in barrooms in Pittsburgh. A true gift from the sports talk radio gods.
In the immediate future, the QB2 job is likely at stake. (Should Rodgers sign, Mason Rudolph’s days in Pittsburgh are probably numbered.) In the intermediate term, one of the two quarterbacks will try to prove that the Steelers do not, in fact, need to trade up to land a first-round QB in 2027. And long-term: Can one become the future of the franchise, the quarterback to finally break this tiresome QB search that’s dragged on for more than half a decade?
“These are two ultra-competitive individuals,” Arth said. “They certainly wouldn’t be where they are if they weren’t. That type of competition typically brings out the best in people.”
Allar and Howard arrived here from different angles. Howard’s arm strength was questioned during his pre-draft process. For Allar — a 6-foot-5, 228-pound passer with nearly 10-inch hands — his arm is probably the best part of his game. Allar’s career ended with the pain of an injury, the disappointment of a season of failed expectations and a coaching termination. Howard’s culminated in the confetti of a national championship, vindicating his head coach. Howard brings the intangibles, often lauded for his leadership, charisma and ability to win a room. Allar has the traits: size, mobility, arm.
Allar has the higher ceiling, Howard the more stable floor.
But, really, is either one the future? Arth acknowledged that Allar has work to do with his fundamentals, particularly his footwork. The third-round pick also needs to improve his processing and accuracy.
“As a coach, I don’t know if you know you’re looking at trying to find a guy who’s a finished product,” Arth said. “I think you want to find someone who has potential to continue to improve.”
While Arth will be a critical part of this process, the Allar pick is about new head coach Mike McCarthy making a bet on himself.
The Steelers found themselves looking for a new head coach, in part, because of their inability to identify, draft and develop a successor to Ben Roethlisberger. That revolving door at the most important position in football has caused the Steelers to spin their wheels, hovering around .500 as their playoff win drought stretches to a decade.
When a team that always valued young, defensive-oriented head coaches parted with decades of precedent to hire a 62-year-old offensive guru, they did so with the QB position in mind. There’s trust that McCarthy’s history working with the likes of Joe Montana, Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers and Dak Prescott will give him the ability to do what his predecessor could not: develop the next franchise quarterback.
With Allar, the Steelers have now handed McCarthy a QB with what appears to be all the tools. It’s the perfect canvas for a coach they’re calling a QB whisperer. It’s also the perfect measuring stick to evaluate the new head coach.
In that way, this isn’t just an Allar vs. Howard competition. It’s also McCarthy vs. the Steelers’ seemingly endless QB purgatory.
