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Ex-Pittsburgh Steelers signal-caller Ben Roethlisberger delivered a warning to his former team on drafting a quarterback in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are still searching for a long-term replacement for two-time Super Bowl champion Ben Roethlisberger. But if it were up to Roethlisberger, he wouldn’t try to find Pittsburgh’s next great quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Not in the first round, second round or third. Roethlisberger explained on the latest episode of “Footbahlin Podcast” that he wouldn’t pick a quarterback on either of the first two days of the 2026 draft.
“I’ve seen some people say quarterback. They should get a quarterback in the second round. I think that’s a huge mistake,” Roethlisberger said Tuesday, via Steelers Depot’s Jake Brockhoff. “Second round, you can get so many really good players, and you don’t waste it on a quarterback right now.
“Even if Aaron [Rodgers] says I’m not coming back, I wouldn’t do it in the second round …
“I would not draft one in my first three picks, to be honest.”
The former two-time NFL passing leader then argued the fact the draft is in Pittsburgh this year should play a role in the organization’s decision-making.
“You better hope that first pick they announce up there is one the fans want,” Roethlisberger added. “They were talking about Ty Simpson. I’m like, alright, they better not.
“Like, that would be the craziest [thing], but if they did that, I think Pittsburgh would boo.”
Ben Roethlisberger Calls Drafting Second-Round QB ‘Waste’
There’s a couple things of note from what Roethlisberger said Tuesday.
First, the former quarterback seems to be reacting to national pundits suggesting the Steelers could take Ty Simpson or another quarterback on Day 2.
That’s not out of the realm of possibility. But Steelers insiders such as Gerry Dulac and Mark Kaboly have reported and/or argued the team isn’t interested in taking a quarterback early.
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio suggested that could be a smokescreen. Maybe it is. It’s hard to tell this time of year.
But it’s far from a foregone conclusion quarterback will be one of the positions the Steelers address in the first three rounds. More than likely, if Aaron Rodgers comes back, it won’t be.
If it is, though, it’s hard to see why it would be a wasted pick as Roethlisberger claims.
The 2026 NFL Draft class isn’t billed as a strong quarterback group. That’s likely why Roethlisberger sees staying away from the group entirely as the more prudent approach.
But clearly, the Steelers have a quarterback need. Rodgers might fill it for one more season. Other than that, Will Howard is far from a guarantee as a former sixth-rounder pick. Mason Rudolph has likely peaked as a decent backup.
Therefore, the Steelers drafting a quarterback at any point hardly seems wasteful.
And to say Pittsburgh might boo Simpson, who the team would believe is its next franchise quarterback if it drafted him in the first round, is a bit of a stretch.
Should Pittsburgh Hosting Play a Role in Steelers Draft Selections?
In the Steelers home matchup against the Buffalo Bills on November 30, the Acrisure Stadium crowd broke out a “Fire Tomlin” chant.
There’s a lot of frustration in the Pittsburgh fan base. While Tomlin is gone, that frustration remains. The team hasn’t won a playoff game in almost a decade. Furthermore, a lot of fans and pundits weren’t happy with the choice of Mike McCarthy as their next head coach.
With that in mind, Roethlisberger is right — the Steelers could use some positive PR with its first-round choice.
But that doesn’t mean the team should aim to make a crowd-pleasing selection in the first round.
If the Steelers firmly believe one of the 2026 quarterbacks is the guy to be the next Roethlisberger, they have to take a chance on him. The organization should do that regardless of what the draft crowd’s reaction may be.
Dave Holcomb is a sports reporter covering the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions. Originally from Pittsburgh, Holcomb has covered college and professional sports for outlets including FanSided, Rotowire and Yardbarker. More about Dave Holcomb
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