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PITTSBURGH -- Mike McCarthy built his reputation in the NFL on mentoring young quarterbacks. He won't lack for opportunities in his first season coaching the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Pittsburgh -- which is still waiting for Aaron Rodgers to decide if he wants to run it back in 2026 -- drafted Penn State's Drew Allar in the third round of the NFL draft on Friday, turning to another nearby prospect a year after taking Ohio State's Will Howard and four years after selecting Pitt's Kenny Pickett.
Pickett flamed out in two seasons. The jury remains very much out on Howard, who spent a sizable chunk of his rookie year on injured reserve.
Enter Allar, who endured injury trouble of own last fall for the Nittany Lions. Once projected as a potential first-round pick during the early stages of his four-year run in Happy Valley, the 6-foot-5, 228-pound Allar is very much like Howard: a tall, strong-armed presence in the pocket who is hardly considered a sure thing as a pro.
Still, the Steelers saw enough to use the 76th overall pick on Allar, whose arrival gives the team another young arm to join a room that also includes veteran backup Mason Rudolph and -- if he decides he wants to return for a 22nd season -- Aaron Rodgers.
Quarterbacks coach Tom Arth said he believes the decision to take Allar will not have "any impact" on the team's willingness to bring back Rodgers, who guided the club to an AFC North title in his first year with Pittsburgh.
Steelers general manager Omar Khan said whoever ends up being the franchise quarterback the team has lacked since Ben Roethlisberger's retirement in early 2022 needs to be built to play in the AFC North. In that sense, Arth thinks Allar checks some pretty significant boxes.
"He has big hands, He has a strong arm. He's built to last," Arth said. "I think that when you're talking about playing in the elements and playing the physical brand of football that it is in the AFC North, you need a guy like that. And Drew certainly fits that mold."
Even if Allar didn't quite live all the way up to the massive expectations that were placed upon his shoulders when he became the starter at Penn State in 2023. Allar passed for 7,402 yards with 61 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in 45 games but struggled against high-caliber competition.
Allar, who helped Penn State to a College Football Playoff berth in 2024, went 0-6 against combined against Ohio State, Michigan, Oregon and Notre Dame in his career, completing just over 50% of his passes with seven touchdowns against four picks.
Arth pointed to Allar's footwork and consistency as things he'll need to clean up as he transitions to the NFL. Still, the Steelers were won over by what Arth described as Allar's "high ceiling" and his humility after his college career ended with an injury in a 22-21 home loss to Northwestern, a setback that came just before head coach James Franklin was fired.
"To see and to really learn and hear about the type of teammate that he was, the way that he helped his backup quarterback prepare, week in and week out in the meetings that the two of them had privately, it was really impressive to me," Arth said. "And I think it just tells you the type of person that he is and the type a teammate that is."
Allar grew up in Medina, Ohio -- about 45 minutes south of downtown Cleveland -- and his family holds season tickets to the rival Browns.
"I guess that's out the window now!" Allar said with a laugh.
While Arth would like to see Howard and Allar compete to bring the best out of each other as they develop, Allar has more modest goals.
"My focus is just going to be on how I can make myself better 1 percent each day," he said. "That's gonna be my main goal, putting my head down and going to work."
Allar was one of four selections by Pittsburgh on Friday. The Steelers selected Alabama wide receiver Germie Bernard in the second round, with Georgia cornerback Daylen Everette and guard Gennings Dunker from Iowa joining Allar as third-round picks.
Buckeye East
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Sharing the field for two college seasons, Arvell Reese, Sonny Styles and Caleb Downs helped Ohio State win a national title powered by a dominant defense.
More than a year removed from that celebration, as Downs reminded his two former teammates on NFL draft night, they are now the competition.
A domino effect in the first round landed them all in the same division, the NFC East. Reese fell to the New York Giants at No. 5, the Washington Commanders took Styles two picks later after Kansas City leapfrogged them for another prospect and the Dallas Cowboys traded up to get Downs at No. 11.
"It's a blessing," Reese said at his introductory news conference Friday. "That means a lot that we get to play in the same division, grow against each other, compete with each other. That's all we ever did at Ohio State."
They also did a lot of winning together, going 30-4 at Ohio State, including the College Football Playoff national championship game victory against Notre Dame in January 2025.
"We had like-minded people: guys who love football, love to win, love their brothers," Styles said Friday at the Commanders' facility in Ashburn, Virginia. "When you have good people off the field and like-minded on the field, good things happen and it's easy to gel."
The Buckeyes had four players chosen in the top 11, with Carnell Tate being the first wide receiver taken at No. 4 by Tennessee, where his new offensive coordinator is former Giants coach Brian Daboll. A total of 99 Ohio State products have gone in the first round, the most of any school, including 20 since Ryan Day took over as coach in 2019.
"I think it probably speaks to most great, big accomplishments done as part of a team," Commanders coach Dan Quinn said, recalling Styles and Downs complimenting each other in the pre-draft process when they were apart. "That spoke to these two players' humility, who were probably the biggest pieces of the communication hub for Matt (Patricia) and their defense at Ohio State."
After all the hoopla of putting on new hats, shaking Commissioner Roger Goodell's hand and posing for pictures, Reese, Styles and Downs got to enjoy a moment together at the hotel in Pittsburgh following the first round on Thursday night.
"We are excited for each other," Styles said. "Can't wait to get to work. Obviously, we're going to get after them."
They'll be seeing a lot of each other over the next several years: twice a season if they're healthy and playing. Downs on Friday at his Cowboys intro news conference said he jokingly told Styles to get away from him because they're on different sides of a heated rivalry.
Their championship bond will last forever, but the trash talk has already begun.
"It happened the moment I had seen them," Downs said. "It's an awesome feeling to know that they both got picked, along with Carnell. Looking forward to playing against them."