Howard is active for Sunday's game against the Bears, where he'll serve as the backup quarterback behind Mason Rudolph, Teresa Varley of the Steelers' official site reports.
Howard opened the season on injured reserve due to a fractured right hand, and after being activated off IR on Nov. 12, he served as the Steelers' emergency third quarterback in Week 11 against the Bengals. However, with Aaron Rodgers (wrist) ruled out for Sunday's clash against Chicago, Howard will be on the active roster for the first time this season and will be available to play in case Rudolph is removed from the game. During his final collegiate season at Ohio State, Howard completed 73.0 percent of his passes for 4,010 yards, 35 touchdowns and 10 interceptions across 16 games.
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Steelers' Will Howard: Emergency QB for Week 11
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Howard (coach's decision) is inactive but will serve as the Steelers' emergency third quarterback against the Bengals on Sunday.
Howard has yet to appear in a regular-season game, having resided on injured reserve due to a fractured hand he suffered during training camp. Cleared of injury, the quarterback is positioned to help his team if injury strikes both starter Aaron Rodgers and backup Mason Rudolph.
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Steelers' Will Howard: Comes off IR
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The Steelers activated Howard (hand) from IR to the 53-man roster on Wednesday.
Howard began the regular season on IR due to a fractured hand suffered during training camp, and after having had his 21-day practice window opened Oct. 22, the rookie sixth-round pick is now ready for game action. He could contribute as the Steelers' emergency No. 3 quarterback behind Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph versus the Bengals on Sunday.
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Steelers' Will Howard: Sent to IR
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The Steelers placed Howard (hand) on injured reserve Thursday, Teresa Varley of the team's official site reports.
Howard will have to miss at least the first four games of the regular season as he works his way back from a fractured bone in his left hand suffered during practice Aug. 5. That injury caused him to miss the entire preseason. Once healthy, the rookie sixth-round pick figures to operate as Pittsburgh's emergency No. 3 quarterback behind Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph.
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Steelers' Will Howard: Not playing Thursday
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Howard (hand) isn't suited up for Thursday's preseason contest at Carolina, Alan Saunders of SteelersNow.com reports.
Howard sustained a broken small bone in his right hand in practice on Aug. 5 and missed the Steelers' first two exhibitions as a result. Thursday's absence will make it a third in a row, meaning the rookie sixth-round pick likely is destined to kick off the campaign as the team's No. 3 QB behind Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph.
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Steelers' Will Howard: Could play in preseason finale
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Howard (hand) hasn't been ruled out from playing in Pittsburgh's final preseason game, Mark Kaboly of 93.7 The Fan Pittsburgh reports.
Howard fractured a bone in his right hand Tuesday, which was expected to keep him out for the entire preseason. However, head coach Mike Tomlin said Howard could make an appearance in Pittsburgh's preseason finale Aug. 21 against Carolina. The 2025 sixth-round pick is competing with Mason Rudolph for the No. 2 role and was on track to have a big workload in the preseason. Skylar Thompson will get more reps in Howard's absence.
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Steelers' Will Howard: Leaves practice with hand injury
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Howard left Tuesday's training camp practice after injuring his throwing hand, Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters that the injury occurred during a quarterback-center exchange. It's bad timing for Howard, who is competing against Mason Rudolph for the backup QB job behind Aaron Rodgers. The severity of the injury is not clear, but it could put Howard in jeopardy of missing the Steelers' preseason opener against the Jaguars on Saturday. Skylar Thompson is set to take over third-string duties for as long as Howard is sidelined.
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Steelers' Will Howard: Opportunity knocks in Pittsburgh
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The Steelers selected Howard in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, 185th overall.
The Steelers waited until late in the draft to address quarterback but still ended up with a decent prospect in Howard. Before leading Ohio State to a national championship in 2024, Howard started parts of four seasons at Kansas State. He didn't have nearly the pass-catching talent at K-State that he had in Columbus, and that's borne out in the numbers -- Howard completed 58.8 percent of his passes at a 7.4 YPA clip. Howard was helped dramatically by the supporting cast at Ohio State and posted a 73 percent completion rate and 9.5 YPA while tossing 35 touchdowns in 16 games. Howard is a big (6-foot-4, 236 pounds) and athletic quarterback who can run. He doesn't possess elite arm talent but is a good processor and is poised. In a situation like Pittsburgh's with no established starter, it wouldn't be shocking for Howard to compete for a starting job. And as a fun aside, Howard actually competed for playing time with fellow Steeler Skylar Thompson while they were at Kansas State.
