The Pittsburgh Steelers opened training camp Tuesday July 28, and their quarterback competition between Mason Rudolph, Will Howard and Drew Allar took a turn.
Mike McCarthy said Rudolph will take the QB2 reps in Latrobe, with Howard and Allar splitting QB3, according to The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo. That is a reversal from OTAs, where Howard held the QB2 spot.
Of course, Aaron Rodgers is the starter going into his 22nd and final NFL season. Everything behind him is suddenly a live question again.
Mason Rudolph Takes QB2 Reps As Steelers Camp Opens
Howard jumped Rudolph on the depth chart when OTAs opened in May, and it was read at the time as a quiet vote of confidence in the second-year passer. Ten weeks later, with the pads about to come on, the veteran is back in front of him.
The logic is not complicated. Rudolph has played 19 NFL games across seven seasons, completing 64.4 percent of his throws with 30 touchdowns and 22 interceptions. He started against Chicago in Week 12 last season while Rodgers recovered from a fractured wrist and completed 77.4 percent of his attempts in the loss.
Howard has never taken an NFL snap. Neither has Allar. Howard spent most of his rookie year on injured reserve and missed all but two weeks of training camp.
Rodgers has said this will be his final season, and he will turn 43 in December. If he misses time, Pittsburgh’s year goes with whoever is second on that list. McCarthy is choosing the floor over the ceiling, at least for now.
That does not settle anything. Camp reps are not roster decisions, and McCarthy has spent the entire spring talking Howard up while running what he calls his quarterback school with both young passers.
“I love the whole process,” McCarthy said of developing Allar from scratch.
Could The Steelers Keep Four Quarterbacks On The Roster?
General manager Omar Khan was asked Tuesday whether Pittsburgh might carry all four into the season. He did not rule it out.
“Is it realistic? Is it doable? I mean, sure it is,” Khan said, per ESPN’s Brooke Pryor, adding that the team will know more in about three weeks.
Teams almost never do this. A fourth quarterback eats a roster spot that would otherwise go to a special teams contributor or a swing offensive lineman, and most clubs carry two or three after cutdown day.
Pittsburgh has a real problem, though. Rodgers is a lock. Allar went 76th overall in April and is not getting cut. Rudolph is the only backup on the roster who has actually played a meaningful down. And Howard would likely be claimed if he hit waivers, which means stashing him on the practice squad is not a safe plan.
That leaves Khan with three options: keep four, trade Rudolph, or lose Howard for nothing. Moving Rudolph would clear $3 million in cap space and could bring back a late-round pick, and his trade value peaks in August when camp injuries start hitting other rosters.
The three weeks Khan referenced are the preseason. That is when Howard and Allar finally get live snaps, and when Pittsburgh learns whether the quarterback it just dropped to third team is worth building a roster spot around.
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