Just like last offseason, we are forced to grapple with the Pittsburgh Steelers\u2019 backup plan if Aaron Rodgers doesn\u2019t commit to the team. Already we\u2019ve heard from various league insiders about the possibility of adding somebody like Kirk Cousins if Rodgers falls through. But according to one prominent Steelers insider, Will Howard\u2014not Cousins or any other veteran\u2014is the Steelers\u2019 clear backup plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is going to get a shot,\u201d Gerry Dulac wrote Wednesday in his weekly Pittsburgh Post-Gazette fan chat<\/a>. \u201cTheir plan, as I stated earlier, is to go all-in on working with him and see what they have.\u201d<\/p>\n While Dulac thinks Rodgers will be the Steelers\u2019 quarterback in 2026, he left no wiggle room when asked about their Plan B: \u201cWH [Will Howard].\u201d<\/p>\n He also shot down the idea of adding Cousins.<\/p>\n \u201cThe last thing the Steelers want to do is bring in another veteran starter, let alone an aging one,\u201d Dulac wrote. \u201cThat is not in their plans.\u201d<\/p>\n In the event Rodgers retires, they likely will add a veteran, just not one who would immediately be named the starter. Somebody like Joe Flacco or Tyrod Taylor could make sense in that role. Cousins would be signing somewhere with the idea of starting, but the other two have competed for their jobs in recent years. Neither would be joining the Steelers with the expectation to start.<\/p>\n This is yet more confirmation that the Will Howard hype isn\u2019t fabricated inside the Steelers\u2019 building. Not to say it isn\u2019t unusual that a sixth-round pick who has yet to play even a preseason snap is generating this much buzz. It definitely is. But it also seems real.<\/p>\n Mike McCarthy immediately talked about Howard during his introductory media tour in Pittsburgh, sometimes bringing his name up unprompted. Omar Khan said he would eventually be given a chance to start<\/a>. And Aaron Rodgers went out of his way to spend five minutes praising Howard<\/a> on The Pat McAfee Show.<\/p>\n