I'm intrigued by Will Howard. And we've seen QB's from later rounds emerge as good QB's. He has a great size / speed combo, great attitude, and a plus arm (not fantastic, but pretty good). And he hasn't played much in a real pro style offense. So I think he has some runway.
He's definitely a beneficiary of the transfer portal. I think he transferred from K State because it was looking like he wasn't going to be the starter, right?
I'm not saying it's a bad thing at all, definitely not for him. I just have to wonder if he plays another year at K State instead, and puts up similar numbers to his other years as a starter, I don't know if he'd get a shot in the NFL. I certainly don't think anyone online would be talking about him as a franchise starter like this.
I think the answer there is a solid "maybe". Avery Johnson showed a ton of promise, but in no way was he projected to start over Howard. Would he have beaten him out? That is where the "maybe" answer comes from.
i agree, and if joe flacco stayed at pitt, he wouldnt have gotten a shot at the nfl. same with Joe Burrows. there are a million examples of athletes, had they not transferred, wouldnt have gotten a shot at the nfl.
Unpack the Circus Tents. In the center ring will be Rogers. In the two end rings, Tomlin and Artie Smith. AR2 as Emcee.
Look, I’ve been pretty vocal here advocating for Kenny. But that was more about his situation here (Canada, Tomlin, no weapons) than it was me saying Kenny had all the tools. What does Kenny have that Howard doesn’t? And vice versa.
Are they letting him string them along? I'm not sure that is a true statement. I think they either know he is going to sign here or they are comfortable with whatever he decides. The rebuild is coming whether Rogers signs or not. So, I'm sure the Steelers won't mind starting the rebuild now vs later.
I don't know that it's true either but usually if a signing is imminent, we hear that they're waiting for some reason or that the guy plans to arrive on this day to sign and get things rolling. That's the odd part. I also can't imagine that the Steelers wouldn't be more dismissive of any reports that he's coming to the Steelers if they were certain he wasn't. It's just odd for an NFL team to be this close to mini camp, needing to decide who is playing the position, and the guy everyone is talking about isn't even on the roster.
They need to decide what they're doing offensively. If they really want to be "run first" go put all of that QB money into OL-men in free agency and go find three or four guys to put behind it. You can bet by with a game manager like in Ben's first Super Bowl. But it has to be all-in, not this half-ass strategy of trying to cobble sometimes questionable rookies and value picks with castoff veterans. Go get the best of the best and honestly prioritize doing what it takes.
Good question. I watched a lot of tO$U fooball this year (hard to avoid it up here) so I think I have a pretty good understand of what both bring to the table.
Isn’t this why you all wanted Pickens gone ?
Now - I have no idea if Howard will be a good nfl qb .
yeah but Rodgers holds more clout than a 3rd year wr who really hasnt done much in the league.
We saw how he elevated the Jets !
wish i could debate you on this but yeah, i agree. for the record, i kind of want to roll with Mason and Howard this year.
yeah, it will be a train wreck and we all love train wrecks. as a steeler fan, the season will be pretty mundane, low expectations, low results so give me the train wreck over quietly having a sub par season with no drama..
I want to roll with Mason and Howard too.
jets had Garrett WIlson, Davante adams last year as a 1/2 combo, we have DK and Calvin Austin. 2015 Aaron Rodgers isnt winning with this WR combo..
Bingo
It's a no lose situation. There's no down side. If he's better than expected (like Purdy), your problem is solved. If he's not, then you have a losing record and in a better position to either select or move up and draft a QB.
Howard played at OSU against top competition. Kenny played at Pitt against, well, less than top competition. I am big on recruiting or drating individuals, in any sport, who have proven themselves against top competition in their prior gigs. Nothing against Kenny, but we lost several games during the Kenny year against less-than-top competition, games in which he should have been piling up Heisman stats, but struggled instead. Pitt alumni have done well in the pros, including QB’s, but Kenny’s overall performance at Pitt was somewhat uneven. Def not worth first round risk. Still recovering from that boo-boo. Wish him well, but the fact that he is now with possibly the worst run organization in professional sports speaks volumes. He HAS to have a good camp and preseason on a crummy team to save his career. Not impossible, but difficult at best. Go Kenny!
You do know that Howard was a transfer to ohio state ?
Kenny piled up Heisman-worthy stats even in our 2021 losses to WMU and Miami. He threw for 6 TDs against Western Michigan, and had nearly 40 completions against Miami with an over 70% completion percentage that game for 500+ yards. The problem was ill-timed interceptions he threw in those games, when he could have been the hero if it wasn't for those. But the problem wasn't stats.
And the B1G is no different than the ACC when you get beyond the couple of teams at the top.
A one season sample size of conference play, in any conference, isn't something to put a ton of stock in IMO. Plenty of one year wonder flameouts all across the CFB landscape.
