Steelers Rookie Drew Allar Earns Major Vote Of Confidence After Fresh Evaluation

The Pittsburgh Steelers' 2026 offseason has been extremely busy. They recently conducted mandatory minicamp at the team facilities as they got a chance to see how several new additions gelled with players that were returning from last year's roster. One of the new, exciting players joining Pittsburgh this season is rookie quarterback Drew Allar. While Allar has his flaws, one analyst recently mentioned how he could fix those ahead of the 2026 campaign.

Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports recently reevaluated the tape on Pittsburgh's third-round draft pick and his evaluation is very encouraging. While Allar certainly needs work as mentioned, Wilson pointed out that Allar could make every throw during his time at Penn State. It is not that part of his game that is flawed, but some footwork and mechanical things that he will have to clean up in hopes to find success in the NFL.

"Because after digging through the data, revisiting the tape and examining the situation he's walking into in Pittsburgh, I came away believing Allar has a much better chance of outperforming his draft slot than I did a few weeks ago," Wilson wrote. "And, look, the flaws remain. But what changed for me is how fixable many of those flaws appear to be, given the team that drafted him."

While Allar certainly did struggle in big moments during his playing time in college, he also showed flashes at various points where he played very well. It should also be noted that Terry Smith, who was the Penn State interim coach and was retained as an assistant head coach, mentioned that the rookie may have been set up for failure during his time there. While that cannot be proven fully, former head coach James Franklin was fired halfway through the 2025 season due to an extremely underwhelming start to the year.

Allar did post some big numbers in the Big Ten Championship, as he completed 20 passes for 226 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 54 yards and added a touchdown on the ground. However, as he often did in his college career, he threw two interceptions and one of those turned out to be on a drive late in the game when he was trying to lead a comeback.

Steelers Now Have Two Young Quarterbacks To Learn From Veteran

The Pittsburgh Steelers now have the chance to break things down and build it back up when it comes to Allar's game. Given the return of veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers, Allar will have at least a year to sit behind him and learn at the NFL level. That experience could prove to be extremely beneficial, especially considering Rodgers is a four-time NFL MVP and a Super Bowl champion.

This latest evaluation from Wilson is encouraging news, especially as the franchise is expecting Rodgers to call it quits after 2026 and they will need to find the answer at quarterback long-term at some point soon. This also should create a healthy and intense quarterback competition ahead of next season as Will Howard had a year to learn under Rodgers last season, despite being injured to start the campaign. Having Rodgers back for one more year will help both young quarterbacks, as they each have flaws in their play.

However, Allar was the higher pick than Howard and if he does end up finding success in the NFL, it will ultimately prove to be a great value pick. While the footwork especially needs improved, he has incredible arm strength which showed in college. He also has the size that you want in a quarterback in the NFL, so that also plays into his favor. Should Allar's flaws be as fixable as Wilson mentioned, the Steelers will end up getting great value in their 2026 third-round pick.

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