The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a lot of roster turnover throughout the 2025 offseason, and a lot of that has come at quarterback. This is the most important position on a football team, and Pittsburgh has completely turned the quarterback room over for the second season in a row. Aaron Rodgers is the unquestioned starter, while Mason Rudolph has returned to the organization as a backup. Rookie Will Howard was brought in as a sixth-round pick, and Skylar Thompson fills out the room as he has limited starting experience in the NFL.
The fan base in Pittsburgh has been desperate for another franchise quarterback, which explains why there is a lot of unreasonable expectations surrounding Howard. His relationship with Rodgers has been given a lot of media coverage as fans hope the rookie picks up a lot from the four-time league MVP, but he has another valuable resource in the quarterback room in Rudolph. Rudolph has been in the league since 2018, and he has a decent amount of starting experience. Howard spoke to SteelerNation writer Jake Boico in Latrobe on Tuesday during a media scrum, and he was asked about Rudolph.
"He's been awesome too," Howard said of Rudolph. "He isn't necessarily, you know, a 20-year guy like Aaron has been, but he's been in the league for five, six years now. He's got a lot of really good experiences himself. Things that he can draw off, things he has learned from different people. He's been great to me. I think some of those guys that have had harder upbringings in their football life when they first get in, they want to give back. He's done a really good job of just being open for me. All of our guys in the room have been great, I'm really blessed, because I know that its not like this everywhere."
Rudolph was drafted by Pittsburgh in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft, and he was with the team through the 2023 season. He spent the 2024 season with the Tennessee Titans, but chose to come back to Pittsburgh during the 2025 offseason. He hasn't had the Hall of Fame career that Rodgers has had, but he has been just as much of a help for Howard.
Howard seems to believe that the trials and tribulations that Rudolph has gone through in his own career have made him want to give back to the younger guys. This sounds like something that could be true, as Rudolph didn't seem to always be treated the best by former Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
At this point in Rudolph's career, it is clear he is nothing more than a backup quarterback. He had a good string of starts at the end of the 2023 season, but his role in the NFL is now defined. He could be a great mentor for Howard, and he might have a couple more spot starts in his career, but that is likely it for the former third-round pick.
Steelers' Will Howard Has All The Tools To Find Success
Howard was underrated coming into the NFL, although he had just won a National Championship. He has all the physical tools to find success. His mobility is above the league average at the position, and his size and frame is what most coaches want out of a quarterback. In addition to that, he has guys like Rodgers and Rudolph to learn from. Thompson is also a former college teammate of Howard's, which could be helping ease his transition into the league.
Hopefully the rookie will get a chance to start a game at some point over the next couple of seasons, and if things go well, he could use everything he learned from Rodgers and Rudolph to carve out a role for himself in Pittsburgh.
