Who is Will Howard? Get to know the Steelers’ newest QB who could potentially compete for the starting job

While it took a little longer than he wanted, Will Howard’s prayers were eventually answered on Day 3 of the 2025 NFL Draft. 

Considered by some to be a Day 2 draft pick, Howard was one of several notable quarterbacks still available when the fourth round began Saturday afternoon. Howard continued to wait until the Pittsburgh Steelers selected him in the sixth round with the 185th overall pick. Howard openly prayed for the Steelers to take him, and his prayers were answered. 

The 23-year-old Howard will now begin his pro career in Pittsburgh, who have turned over their quarterback room for a second straight year. Howard will get a chance to work alongside veteran Mason Rudolph, who was re-signed by the Steelers after spending the 2024 season with the Titans. Howard may also get an opportunity to work with Aaron Rodgers if the four-time league MVP decides to continue his career with Pittsburgh. 

Here’s a closer look at Howard and his journey to get to the NFL. 

Early adversity

A native of West Chester, Pennsylvania, Howard grew up a Penn State fan (his dad and sister went to school there). Despite a prolific high school career that included being named the Maxwell Football Club Pennsylvania Player of the Year as a senior, Howard wasn’t seriously considered by Penn State (or many other big-name schools) after suffering an injury during his junior season. 

“That junior year was supposed to be real big for me,” Howard recently told former NFL head coach Jon Gruden. “I’m talking to Penn State, I’m talking to all these schools, and then, bang, I got injured and never heard from Penn State again. It kind of became a little real, and I kind of realized who actually wanted me after that injury. K-State actually came in and (that) was a big reason why I went there.” 

Despite being injured, Howard simply couldn’t not have football be a part of his life. While he couldn’t play, Howard spent his junior season as a pseudo coach for his school, Downingtown West. It’s safe to say that experience paid major dividends for Howard in the coming years. 

Kansas State QB battle 

Howard didn’t get off to a great start at Kansas State. He led the Big 12 in interceptions as a freshman while completing less than 54% of his passes. As a junior, Howard started to have some success, but it didn’t stop Kansas State from bringing in then-Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez after the 2022 season. 

“That was a crazy time,” Howard said. “Felt like I wasn’t playing up to my ability. I understood why they wanted to go get a guy, but it still pissed me off. I thought that it was gonna be my turn. … The immediate reaction from everybody was like, quit, go transfer, go leave. I was like, I feel like this is the right place for me. … In fall camp, I knew that they were probably go give him the job, but I was like, ‘Shit, I’m gonna stay ready. At the end of the day, both of us were a big reason why we won the Big 12 championship that year.” 

Howard ended up having his best season at Kansas State in 2023, throwing 24 touchdowns (against 10 interceptions) and helping lead the Wildcats to a conference title. 

NFL Draft 2025: Why Ohio State’s Will Howard believes he’s the ‘best quarterback in this class’

Becoming a Buckeye 

After the 2023 season, Howard decided to transfer to Ohio State for his final season of eligibility. The Buckeyes, despite winning their first 11 games in 2023, were in the market for a new quarterback after they encouraged then-starting quarterback Kyle McCord to enter the transfer portal. (McCord, who spent the 2024 season at Syracuse, was selected by the Eagles with the 181st pick in the draft.) 

Howard was coming to an Ohio State team that was widely expected to win it all in 2024. Along with Howard, the Buckeyes’ roster had several other high-profile players that included wideouts Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka, running backs Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson, offensive tackle Josh Simmons, and pass rushers JT Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer (who was also drafted by the Steelers in the fourth round). 

If there was any doubt about what the expectation was for the 2024 Buckeyes, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day made it clear during his initial meeting with Howard. 

“When Coach Day came and met with me, he said, ‘I believe that you can be the guy that can lead us to a national title,'” Howard recalled. “I said, ‘I’m not going to let you down.’ I love being the underdog and when people don’t expect me to go out and do things, I do it.” 

A run for the ages 

With the exception of a close loss at Oregon, the 2024 season couldn’t have started much better for Howard and the Buckeyes. Howard was playing at a high level, and the Buckeyes had climbed to the No. 2 spot in the nation entering their regular season finale against arch rival Michigan. 

After dominating the rivalry for the majority of the century, Ohio State had lost three straight games to Michigan entering last November’s clash at Ohio Stadium. Heavy favorites, the Buckeyes were shocked by a Wolverines team that had already lost five times. It was an especially tough game for Howard, who threw two interceptions and completed just 57.6% of his passes. 

While the loss stung, it served as a turning point for Howard and his teammates heading into the College Football Playoff. 

“It felt like the world was kinda collapsing around you,” Howard said of the loss. “Everybody is hating on you. The reason why you come to Ohio State is to beat that team up north. It was tough. We had a players-only meeting that next week, and we basically said that we still have the national championship. Obviously, it didn’t end the way that we wanted it to. It was just f—ingg brutal. As much as this game hurt, the only thing that we could do was to stay together for a common purpose.” 

Howard and his teammates did just that. Ohio State steamrolled through the playoffs, dispatching Tennessee (42-17), Oregon (41-21), Texas (28-14) and Notre Dame (34-23) en route to the national title. During that run, Howard completed 75.2% of his passes with eight touchdowns and just two picks. 

Howard capped off his college career with a brilliant performance against Notre Dame. In that game, Howard went 17 of 21 for 231 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 57 yards on the ground while showing his ability as a runner. 

During the playoffs, Howard showed that he can win in a variety of ways. After airing it out during Ohio State’s wins over Tennessee and Oregon, Howard faced a Texas defense that employed a game plan similar to the one that Michigan used six weeks earlier. 

“It was gonna be more of a methodical game,” Howard said. “They wanted to play in a simulated Cover 2. We knew we were gonna have to slice them in some zones, be able to take our check downs. Check downs were a big emphasis in this game.”

Howard took on the challenge with gusto. While the Longhorns did pick him off once, Howard completed 72.7% of his passes for 289 yards. He also made one of the game’s biggest plays when he hit Henderson on a screen pass that Henderson took 75 yards to the house just before halftime. 

Ben Roethlisberger offers advice to Steelers rookie quarterback Will Howard

Bryan DeArdo

What he brings to the Steelers 

At 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds, Howard has ideal size for an NFL quarterback. Howard uses his size to his advantage, both as a passer and as a runner. While he is known more for his passing, Howard made a ton of plays with his feet during his time in college. He actually scored on a 80-yard touchdown run during his time at Kansas State. 

Howard loves throwing the go route, which is surely one of the things that attracted him to the Steelers. Howard had a lot of success throwing downfield at Ohio State, and it’s safe to assume that he would relish the chance to take shots downfield to DK Metcalf and George Pickens if given the opportunity to do so. Howard’s no-step drop was one of the things that allowed him to complete passes at a high rate last year while avoiding the rush. 

While he enjoys throwing downfield, Howard — as he showed against Texas — has no issues being more conservative if that’s what the game plan calls for. He also has no problem being in a game that requires a lot of hand-offs to his running backs. In fact, one of Howard’s most memorable wins at Ohio State — the Buckeyes’ 20-13 win at Penn State — included 40 running plays against 24 passes. 

From an intangible standpoint, Howard is considered a natural leader who bonds easily with his teammates. That, perhaps just as much as anything else, might be one of Howard’s biggest strengths as he enters the next chapter in his football journey. 

Will Howard scouting report

By CBSSports.com’s NFL Draft team

Will Howard first garnered national attention when at Kansas State in 2022 he helped upset undefeated TCU in the Big 12 championship game. He garnered even more attention after transferring to Ohio State and leading them through the first-ever 12-team playoff to a national title last season. While it was a stacked Ohio State roster, Howard played far and away the best football of his career in the second half of last season. He still qualifies as a developmental prospect, but he’s an easy personality to buy stock in.

Strengths

• Looks the part. Prototype build with big arm
• Very consistent base from the pocket
• Accuracy down the stretch was a different dude entirely. Very few misses

Weaknesses

• Robotic from the pocket. Short circuits under pressure
• No dynamism to create as a runner. More a battering ram
• Was playing on easy mode. Layups left and right
• Loses zone defenders in his vision more than you’d like