The Pittsburgh Steelers have been searching for a franchise quarterback for years now to no avail. They’ve employed a variety of players, like future Hall of Fame quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson, and long-term projects like Justin Fields and Kenny Pickett. With none of these options panning out, Pittsburgh pivoted to the 2026 NFL Draft, selecting former Penn State signal caller Drew Allar with the 76th pick in the third round.
Allar had a ton of momentum heading into last season, but an underwhelming, injury-riddled season tanked his draft stock, which allowed Pittsburgh to scoop him up in the third round last weekend. The Nittany Lions quarterback showed intermittent flashes during his college career, but Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger isn’t totally convinced that he can be the guy for his old team moving forward.
On the latest episode of his podcast, Roethlisberger told former teammate Max Starks, “I’m not sure yet if I love it or hate it… When I did watch, he never jumped off the page to me.” Pittsburgh’s longtime quarterback acknowledged that Allar has elite traits, “But there was never a time where I was like, ‘Whoa.’”
Roethlisberger admitted during the podcast that he didn’t watch many Penn State games, which makes sense why he didn’t see some of Allar’s big throws. The former five-star recruit certainly isn’t ready-made to dominate in the NFL, but it was hard not to watch his games and see the raw talent he possessed.
Allar has a lot of work to do to hit his ceiling, and now he also has to earn the approval of a man who is immortal in The Steel City.
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This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: Ben Roethlisberger not sold on Steelers’ QB Drew Allar