Steelers free agency primer: Quarterbacks

Story by

Story by
Steelers free agency primer: Quarterbacks

Curt Popejoy, Steelers Wire · Steelers Wire

Thu, Feb 26, 2026 ·

2 min read

Quarterbacks under contract

Going into the offseason, the steelers have two quarterbacks under contract. Will Howard heads into his second season after a broken thumb cost him almost all of his rookie campaign. Head coach Mike McCarthy is high on Howard's potential and while we think he will get a fair shot, his potential won't slow things down for the front office.

The Steelers also have veteran Mason Rudolph under contract through 2027. Rudolph was a favorite of former head coach Mike Tomlin but with a potential $3 million cap savings with a release, we don't expect him to stick this season with a rebuild on the way.

In-house free agents

The Steelers have two quarterbacks who will be free agents. The name we all know is Aaron Rodgers . Rodgers signed as a free agent last Summer and led the team to a 10-7 record despite pedestrian stats. This time around, Khan has said he does not foresee the courting process running this long and insiders expect a decision to come closer to the start of free agency and well ahead of the draft. Skylar Thompson is also a free agent but we don't look for him to return to the team.

Potential free agent additions

If the Steelers chose to seek out a free agent other than Rodgers, the only big name out there this offseason is Green Bay Packers quarterback Malik Willis . Willis had a breakout campaign in place of Jordan Love and is looking to cash in.

Potential trade candidates

With a fairly limited pool of quarterbacks in free agency, a trade could be the team's best option. Our favorite candidates for a trade are Arizona Cardinals ' Kyler Murray and San Francisco 49ers signal caller Mac Jones . Both players would cost a significant amount of draft capital and potentially a player as well but the biggest difference is Jones' cap hit is $2.6 million and Murray's is $24.9 million.