Aaron Rodgers Leads Steelers’ No. 4 Drew Allar Into Spring Reps
Drew Allar spent the spring as the Steelers’ No. 4 quarterback behind Aaron Rodgers, Will Howard and Mason Rudolph, but last week he got a heavier workload when Rodgers and Rudolph were excused from organized team activities. The extra snaps came as Pittsburgh began reworking his footwork, the first step in its plan to develop him into a future starter.
Allar Behind Rodgers and Rudolph
The rookie sat fourth on the quarterback depth chart throughout spring practices. At 6-foot-5 and 228 pounds, Allar was already in the building as the Steelers tried to shape the traits that made him attractive enough to take with the No. 76 overall pick in April.
He finished his college career with a 63.2% completion percentage, 61 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions, while also rushing for 732 yards and 12 touchdowns. Those numbers gave the Steelers a clearer baseline for where the work had to start, and the staff opened with his footwork rather than asking him to carry a bigger load too quickly.
Steelers Start With Footwork
Mike McCarthy’s arrival gives that process a sharper quarterback focus, and the team has committed resources to Allar with the hope that he can become its future starter. Brian Angelichio, Tom Arth and Tim Berbenich are part of the group handling that work, so the spring reps were not just about volume but about tightening the basics that shape everything else a young quarterback does.
The depth chart also shows the obstacle in front of him. Rodgers, Howard and Rudolph were ahead of him all spring, so the rookie’s path depended on practice time that had to be earned behind three veterans.
OTA Reps For Drew Allar
That is why last week mattered. When Rodgers and Rudolph were excused during OTAs, Allar got plenty of practice reps, the kind of live work that can speed up a rookie’s adjustment when the coaching staff is still rebuilding his mechanics.
The Steelers’ April decision to use the draft pick from the George Pickens trade with the Dallas Cowboys on Allar tied the move directly to the long term. For now, the immediate job is simple: keep stacking reps, keep refining the footwork, and keep him close enough to the veterans to learn without being rushed into the top of the depth chart.
