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The Pittsburgh Steelers know that having an insurance policy is key any time you are trotting out a 41 year-old quarterback like Aaron Rodgers , who will be Pittsburgh 's starter this year. That's precisely why the team drafted Will Howard , the former Ohio State national championship quarterback, in this year's NFL Draft.
Unfortunately, Howard recently went down with a fracture in his hand, but on Monday, head coach Mike Tomlin gave a mildly optimistic update on Howard's recovery.
"He's had some positive reviews meeting with the hand specialist," said Tomlin, per Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on X, formerly Twitter. "We've increased his level of activity. We've altered the brace that you mentioned, so he's moving in the right direction in terms of full participation very soon."
The Steelers would certainly love to have Howard available as soon as possible given the fact that Rodgers could theoretically break down at any moment. In 2023, it took just a few snaps before Rodgers' first season with the New York Jets was ended due to a torn Achilles.
Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
The Steelers have spent most of their time and resources this offseason acquiring veteran talent, including players like Darius Slay and Jalen Ramsey , in addition of course to Rodgers, in an attempt to go all-in on competing for a Super Bowl championship this upcoming season.
While the Steelers continue to churn out winning season after winning season under Mike Tomlin, the team has hit a bit of a standstill in recent years, not having won a playoff game in the better part of a decade.
Pittsburgh is hoping that Rodgers has more left in the tank than what he displayed last year with the Jets, when he was fully healthy but looked like a far cry from his MVP years with the Green Bay Packers .
The Steelers will also hope that their new number one receiver, DK Metcalf , is able to establish some synergy with Rodgers sooner rather than later.
In any case, Pittsburgh will kick off its 2025 season on September 7 against the New York Jets from the Meadowlands.
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