Steelers plan to keep Will Howard and Drew Allar on 53-man roster, shaping quarterback depth

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback room is taking its most important preseason form in late roster cuts, with a report indicating the team plans to keep both Will Howard and Drew Allar on the 53-man roster. The move matters because it effectively sets the team’s regular-season depth plan, determining how much developmental carryover Pittsburgh can afford while also protecting its immediate passing-game needs.

According to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Steelers are expected to carry four quarterbacks heading into the regular season. That would include starter Aaron Rodgers, who is described as assured a spot, and Mason Rudolph, who is expected to reprise his role as the backup. The final two spots in that group would then be Will Howard and Drew Allar, pending the usual final roster details that can change from week to week.

In practical terms, keeping both Howard and Allar suggests the Steelers want two different versions of the future on the active roster. Howard’s presence would give Pittsburgh another experienced option within the quarterback rotation, while Allar’s retention aligns with the team’s long-range investment in developing a young passer for eventual succession planning. For a franchise that has frequently viewed the quarterback position through both present stability and future continuity, carrying two non-starters is a deliberate roster philosophy rather than an accident of depth.

The backup plan is also shaped by the report’s description of Rudolph’s expected role. If Pittsburgh is comfortable positioning Rudolph as the primary relief quarterback behind Rodgers, it reduces the urgency to rush a younger player into game-week duties. At the same time, having Howard and Allar available means the team can still run a broader set of practice looks, protect against unexpected changes, and evaluate day-to-day preparation at full speed.

Roster construction at the quarterback position carries a unique cost, since only a limited number of players can be carried on game day. Carrying four quarterbacks means Pittsburgh is choosing to dedicate roster bandwidth to two developing players rather than swapping one of them for an additional body at another position group. That decision points to internal confidence that both Howard and Allar can contribute in ways that go beyond occasional snaps, whether through practice execution, playbook familiarity, and preparation for specific game-plan needs.

The report also frames Rodgers’ roster status as effectively settled, which is a key ingredient in why the Steelers can afford to make development-heavy choices. When a starter is assured, the team gains leverage in the rest of the quarterback room. The remaining competition then becomes less about whether Rodgers is on the roster and more about how the Steelers want their second and third lines to function, including who is best prepared to handle routine quarterback duties if the starter misses time.