Former Ohio State national championship-winning quarterback Will Howard told Steelers.com that playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers became his obsession following initial conversations during the draft process.
Now he gets to live it.
Howard revealed his strong connection to the organization as rookie minicamp wrapped up Sunday. The Pennsylvania native is determined to prove the Steelers made the right decision in selecting him after being overlooked throughout his career.
“After my experiences with Coach [Mike] Tomlin and everybody from the Steelers at the NFL combine, I had a formal interview with them there,” Howard told Steelers.com. “And then Coach and [offensive coordinator] Arthur [Smith] and [general manager] Omar [Khan] all had dinner with us for our pro day.”
The dinner meeting solidified Howard’s desire to join Pittsburgh.
“After those two interactions, you never know what’s going to happen in this process, but I wanted to be a Steeler,” Howard said. “Coach Tomlin, I want to play for him.”
Howard’s mindset shifted once the Steelers selected him late last month.
“Ever since I was a little kid, this has been my dream,” Howard said. “I remember writing something in first grade what I wanted to be when I grew up. It’s always been, I want to be a professional athlete. Through this whole process, my parents and I were talking about the grind, and you never know how things can go. Through it all, I wanted to remember what younger me would be thinking. And I really am blessed.”
The quarterback expressed confidence that Pittsburgh is the perfect landing spot for his NFL career.
“I ended up in the perfect spot for me. It’s a match made in heaven. I was so fired up when I got that call, and I heard Omar’s voice. I was like, man this just could not be better,” Howard said.
For now, his work has just begun.
