Across nearly 2 decades and 18 seasons as an NFL head coach with the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys, Mike McCarthy has never once walked into Week 1 carrying four quarterbacks on an active 53-man roster. Now, this trend might be set to change in his first season in charge of the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

Following the Steelers’ 28-27 preseason finale loss to the Buffalo Bills, Mike McCarthy expressed his thoughts on a rather uncommon roster blueprint possibility that could act as the backup plan for Aaron Rodgers in what is set to be his final year in the NFL.

Entering year 22, the four-time MVP’s body is not what it once was, and he will certainly need a backup he can rely on. So who stays on the roster to fill in among the veteran QB Mason Rudolph, sophomore QB Will Howard, and rookie QB Drew Allar? When asked whether all four QBs had earned a roster spot, Mike McCarthy didn’t deny any possibility.

“I think that’s a very accurate evaluation on your part. Yep. Yeah, I feel good about the quarterback room. I’ve been saying it for quite some time. I think they’ve shown it on the field. So, we’ve got two veterans that we can win with, and we’ve got two young guys that we’re real excited about their future,” Mike McCarthy told the reporters after the preseason loss against the Bills, via ESPN’s Brooke Pryor.

The head coach’s assessment certainly does appear bold, as Drew Allar and Will Howard haven’t appeared in a single NFL game yet. Meanwhile, Rudolph is experienced at age 31, but he only started one game last season.

McCarthy had previously addressed the quality at his disposal in the Steelers QB room, saying that it “only enhances what the regular season would look like”. He even claimed that had it been a possibility, he would’ve kept 6 QBs on the roster if they were providing the quality that the 4 in the Steelers QB room currently possess. 

Aaron Rodgers is entering the 2026 season at 42 years old, expected to one again, be the oldest QB in the league. While Rodgers completed 65.7% of his passes for 3,322 yards, 24 TDs, and just 7 INTs in 2025, his age demands immediate insurance that someone like Mason Rudolph can provide. 

Pittsburgh cannot gamble on unproven rookies if Rodgers gets hurt while trying to end the Steelers’ active streak of 7 consecutive postseason losses, with their last playoff win coming over a decade ago on January 15, 2017 (when they beat the Kansas City Chiefs 18–16 in the AFC Divisional Round). 

“Mason has great command of the offense. I mean, just pure on the field, game day, he’s very experienced. He’s a strong personality in the locker room. I really like his command, understand the offense. He’s been through a number of systems. He’s been asked to do things differently for how we believe the quarterback position is played. He’s done an excellent job,” Mike McCarthy said after an earlier preseason game vs the New York Jets, per ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. 

Mason Rudolph holds a 9-9-1 career regular-season record across 19 NFL starts, with 4,925 passing yards and 30 passing TDs. In 2023, he stepped into the starting lineup late in the regular season to lead Pittsburgh to 3 straight wins (completing 74.3% of his passes with a 118.0 passer rating) and a spot in the postseason. 

In contrast, Will Howard and Drew Allar both, have only logged snaps in the NFL preseason and haven’t featured yet in a regular-season game. The step-up to the league from college football isn’t always easy, and to rely on them as Aaron Rodgers’ primary backup can be a risk. 

Instead, having Rudolph fill in allows Mike McCarthy and the Steelers coaching staff to evaluate and develop the young talents going forward better, with no immediate pressure to start them in big games. 

Search for a franchise QB and Mike McCarthy’s unique strategy to develop backups 

 The Steelers haven’t had a franchise QB since the former 6x Pro Bowler and 2x Super Bowl champion, Ben Roethlisberger. Addressing the concern among the fanbase, veteran QB Mason Rudolph expressed his belief in the two youngsters, Will Howard and Drew Allar. 

“I’m very aware that the fanbase is starved for a franchise QB,” Rudolph stated, per Steelers Now’s Chris Ward. “People want to have hope for the future beyond this year. We’ve got two great QBs who are young and progressing. I really am jealous of the structure they have had in this program and this QB-grooming system the way that Coach McCarthy has done it because I feel that they have made a lot of strides. I’ll be rooting them on Friday.”

Starting QBs usually take up to 80% – 90% of first-team reps in practice. This hampers the development of backup QBs. However, Mike McCarthy has found an intelligent way around this.

To keep everyone progressing, McCarthy implemented a dual-field practice system where Aaron Rodgers is placed on a veteran arm-maintenance schedule. This allows backups to get more live reps in training camp on a separate field, per Senior Steelers insider Mark Kaboly. 

It remains to be seen whether the Steelers go with a 4 QB room as the roster cut dates draw closer. If they do, how and where does it impact their roster, as they’ll have to sacrifice in some other area of the roster? If not, which of the 4 QBs don’t make the cut?