The Pittsburgh Steelers chosen Ohio State teammates Jack Sawyer and Will Howard within the 2025 NFL Draft. Little question, Howard was excited to be reunited with Sawyer (and former Kansas State teammate and QB mentor Skylar Thompson). And why wouldn’t Howard be excited to play once more with Sawyer?
In any case, the 2 received the nationwide championship with Ohio State final season. That’s a heck of a strategy to exit in the case of a school profession. And Sawyer, a stat-stuffing OLB, made an unbelievable play on the finish of the Faculty Soccer Playoff Semifinal, choosing off Texas QB Quinn Ewers and returning it for a landing. That cemented Ohio State’s place within the title sport.
However what’s stunning is {that a} title-winning quarterback fell to the sixth spherical. Sawyer anticipated the next draft spot for Howard.
“I used to be shocked he was nonetheless there,” stated Sawyer per video from the staff’s SteelersLive X/Twitter account. “Will’s similar to, he’s every part you need [in] a quarterback, you recognize what I imply? Clearly, I’m biased, I received a nationwide championship with him. However he’s assured, he presents himself effectively, he handles himself effectively, and he goes about preparation actually exhausting. I haven’t seen it from anybody else. So, Will’s an ideal man and a great chief, and I believe he’s gonna have a great profession.”
Now, not each championship-winning quarterback is valued by the NFL. Former Georgia QB Stetson Bennett was the starter for each the 2021 and 2022 title-winning groups however was drafted within the fourth spherical in 2023. However out of the 5 title-winning quarterbacks earlier than Howard, 4 of them have been first-round picks. Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy was chosen tenth total by the Minnesota Vikings in 2024. Alabama QB Mac Jones was taken fifteenth total in 2021 by the New England Patriots. The Cincinnati Bengals took LSU QB Joe Burrow first total in 2020, and the Jacksonville Jaguars took Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence first total in 2021.
Latest historical past tells us that the NFL tends to love nationwide championship winners. So, whereas Will Howard could not have an elite arm, you possibly can forgive Jack Sawyer for being shocked that the Steelers acquired him within the sixth spherical. And Sawyer isn’t the one one. One school defensive coordinator, talking anonymously to ESPN, couldn’t perceive why Howard went after Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel, whom the Browns drafted within the third spherical.
Now, nobody is saying that Will Howard ought to have been a first-round decide. He doesn’t have the identical instruments as gamers like Burrow. However he definitely is ready for enjoying quarterback mentally, as Sawyer stated. He’s proven a capability to beat adversity, which is what he says units him other than different quarterbacks. And evidently, he was a great chief at Ohio State regardless of solely taking part in one season for the Buckeyes. To have the ability to step into that atmosphere and present gamers at a blue-blood school program like Ohio State which you can be a frontrunner is spectacular.
It additionally doesn’t damage that Howard can execute a sport plan at a fairly excessive degree. NFL Movies senior producer Greg Cosell praised Howard for a way effectively he operates within the pocket. He additionally has proven that he can run fairly effectively, one thing Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith will like.
If Will Howard exhibits the flexibility to reply to every part he sees in entrance of him like he did in school, he might very effectively outperform that sixth-round draft spot.
And that received’t shock Jack Sawyer in any respect.
