This will be the offseason where many quarterbacks will be linked to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Ben Roethlisberger has been with the Pittsburgh Steelers for 18 seasons and plans on retiring soon. It has been 18 years since many analysts have discussed another quarterback coming to Pittsburgh to take over the reins from Ben Roethlisberger so of course this is going to be the biggest topic of the 2022 offseason for the Steelers.
It seems just about every veteran quarterback and young quarterback talent coming from the 2022 NFL draft is linked with the Pittsburgh Steelers. No one truly knows what Mike Tomlin and the Steelers are going to do at the quarterback position during the offseason, but it sure is fun to discuss. What we do know is Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins will be able to prove they deserve the starting job in Pittsburgh at this point.
There will be many mock drafts coming out, but the ones we mainly like to watch throughout the offseason is Pro Football Focus's mock drafts. Last season it seemed like everyone knew Najee Harris was going to the Pittsburgh Steelers, but this offseason will remain a mystery because of how many holes the Steelers need to fill in the offseason. We generally will get an idea what the Steelers are thinking once they start signing some free agents, but the top two priorities this offseason should be the quarterback and offensive line.
PFF recently released their first mock draft of the 2022 offseason. Of course they had the Steelers picking a quarterback in the draft, but it wasn't Kenny Pickett. They have the Steelers selecting quarterback Sam Howell from North Carolina in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Pro Football Focus calls Sam Howell the 'RPO King.' They continue to give him praise throughout the offseason and have him being drafted as a top 10 quarterback all the way to the end of the first round of the NFL draft. It is clear Pro Football Focus feels Sam Howell is a first round caliber quarterback. Howell has a current PFF grade of 90.0. Howell did lose a lot of talent at North Carolina, but still shined during his time in 2021 with North Carolina.
PFF says, 'Like other quarterback-needy teams in this mock, Pittsburgh is still not a lock to take a signal-caller. But if things stand pat with where the Steelers are currently, they’ll need a first-round-caliber quarterback from this class. Howell feels like a good bet for the team. He posted an elite PFF grade as a passer in 2020, and then an elite grade as a runner in 2021.'