Pittsburgh Steelers rookie quarterback Drew Allar stepped to the microphones Tuesday and described exactly how the game has started to feel different. Seven weeks after the Steelers took him 76th overall in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, the former Penn State star has already logged roughly a dozen practice sessions. The latest ones carried extra weight.
Veterans Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph sat out the final week of organized team activities. That left Allar and second-year quarterback Will Howard splitting the bulk of the reps with the starting offense and defense. Allar called it exactly what it was.
“It’s definitely a big week,” Allar said. “I try to take as many mental reps as I can throughout the practice, but it’s definitely different when you’re the one taking those reps. You’re kind of logging those in your memory bank.”
The difference showed up immediately in how he talked about his own body and decision-making. He said he feels noticeably more comfortable physically than even a couple weeks ago. The tape from 7-on-7 and team periods backs that up.
Playing Slower, Thinking Faster
Allar zeroed in on one clear sign of growth: his feet.
“I feel a lot more comfortable physically. I feel like you can see that in my tape from 7-on-7 and even the team reps I’ve gotten. I feel like I’m playing slower, which is a good thing. I’m thinking fast, but my feet are playing slow. I’m in time and in rhythm.”
He knows when things are off because his feet tell him first. That awareness, he said, has become a reliable feedback loop. Bad throw? Check the feet. Good decision? The rhythm was there. He’s now using that as his internal coach on every snap.
Head coach Mike McCarthy and quarterbacks coach Tom Arth spent extra time this week hammering stance, first step, and how the lower body connects to every run and pass concept. Allar arrived from college with some habits that simply don’t exist in this offense. The work is sticking.
Learning From Aaron Rodgers in Real Time
The biggest human element in Allar’s first seven weeks has been the daily access to Rodgers. The veteran has not treated the rookie like background noise.
“Aaron’s been a huge help to not only me but the whole room. With me specifically, he’s pulled me aside during practice to talk through some drill work or things to focus on throughout different drills. And in the film room, just asking me questions of what I was looking at and why. I’m really excited to keep learning from him. Obviously, he’s one of the best to ever do it in this game. The opportunity I have is what I’m not going to take for granted.”
That kind of one-on-one coaching in the middle of a live practice is rare for a third-round rookie. Allar is soaking it in without taking any of it for granted. He knows the window is short before training camp pads come on and the real competition begins.
The Real Challenge: Volume
Ask Allar what has been hardest and he doesn’t hesitate. It isn’t the speed of the defense or the size of the players. It’s the sheer amount of information that arrives in every install and every practice.
“I think the most challenging part is the amount of information in each practice and each install that I’m used to. It’s just a lot more in general. It’s really just taking time on your free time to really hammer it down on your own. But also if you have questions, just come in the next day, ask Aaron, Will, Mason or Coach McCarthy.”
He has leaned on exactly that routine. Extra film study at night. Direct questions the next morning. The coaches and veteran quarterbacks have made themselves available. Allar said the entire quarterback room has felt collaborative from day one.
What Comes Next
Once OTAs wrap, Allar plans to spend the next six and a half weeks training with his personal quarterback coach, John Beck, before reporting to training camp. The goal is simple: arrive in Latrobe with the playbook already second nature so he can focus on live timing and decision speed against NFL defenders.
Steelers fans have seen this movie before with young quarterbacks who got real developmental runway. The organization has not cut a third-round pick in 41 years. Allar knows the opportunity in front of him. He also knows the only way to keep earning it is the same way he attacked this final OTA week — one rep at a time, logging everything, and refusing to waste a single mental snapshot.
The kid who grew up a Cleveland Browns fan is now fully invested in making Pittsburgh’s quarterback room better every single day. And after this week, he can feel the difference in his own feet.
