When the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Penn State quarterback Drew Allar in the third round of the 2026 NFL draft, many presumed the plan was to groom him over the next year or two to be the team’s long-term starter.
The presumption is Aaron Rodgers will return in 2026 for a farewell season, leaving the Steelers in a predicament heading into the following offseason.
But ESPN’s Dan Graziano is cautioning Steelers fans not to rule out the possibility that Allar is the team’s QB1 as quickly as one year from now.
“The Steelers know they need to solve this QB problem in a real and lasting way at some point,” Graziano wrote. “Allar was drafted three rounds earlier than Howard was. The Steelers seem to like Howard, but he was injured for most of his rookie year and might not be much further along in his development than Allar is.
“The Steelers hired Mike McCarthy as their head coach after Mike Tomlin stepped down, partly because they believe in McCarthy’s ability to work with and develop young quarterbacks.
“Can McCarthy bring Allar along this year even as he works to coach a contender with (presumably) Rodgers as the starting QB? It’s not out of the question. Knowing what we know about the Steelers’ QB situation at the moment, you can’t rule out the possibility of Allar starting in 2027.”
In three-plus seasons at Penn State, Aller threw for 7,402 yards, 61 touchdowns, and just 13 interceptions. He also rushed 736 yards and 12 more touchdowns.
Though he’s coming off a season-ending injury, the issue with Allar has never been his talent. Scouts have said he may be the most physically gifted QB coming out of the 2026 draft class.
His problem is his stagnant development and worked with coaches who didn’t help him maximize his physical tools and turn it into tangible results on the field. But that’s where Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy thrives.
In fact, it’s one of the reasons Pittsburgh hired him.
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