Derek

Calling all lip readers ... whatcha got for us?

What has me excited about Drew Allar being drafted by the Steelers is he now has a chance to the get the Patrick Mahomes treatment here in Pittsburgh, assuming Rodgers is back for another season, which it sounds like he will be. The Steelers are trying to apply the lessons from the success KC had in finding & developing Mahomes and are using that blueprint to try and find their next franchise QB. Incredibly talented but raw QB coming out with star-level upside gets the opportunity to be coached up by an offensive minded head coach from a west coast offense background with a specialty in developing QB talent & sitting behind a veteran for a year before inheriting a playoff-caliber roster. It was the perfect setup for Pat, and I think it’s the perfect setup for Drew as well. Even better, PIT didn’t need to invest nearly as much in Drew from a draft capital standpoint as KC did in Pat; they get all that upside for just a 3rd round selection. And people always forget the Chiefs were heavily criticized at the time for making that decision as well, for pretty much the same reasons people don’t like the Allar pick here in Pittsburgh (bad footwork, not accurate enough, not enough team success in college, etc) If there’s even a 20% chance Drew could be the next great franchise QB here in Pittsburgh (and with this setup I think the odds are at least that high), that pick was absolutely worth the investment, especially given the fact that this team didn’t have a legitimate long-term plan at QB on the roster (sorry Will Howard fans), and now they have one! It’s also worth mentioning that the Steelers need to compete with QBs like Mahomes, Allen, Lamar, Burrow, Maye, Lawrence, and Herbert, and that’s just in the AFC. If you want to consistently compete with those guys & those teams, you gotta try to find a QB that can feasibly reach that level of upside, and Allar certainly fits that bill with his insane arm talent if he takes well to NFL coaching & development. Just like drafting any other ‘boom or bust’ type of QB prospect, there’s definitely a chance Drew ends up never being a good NFL QB, but with three 3rd rounds pics, this was a luxury pick for Pittsburgh, and when you pair his level of upside with the ideal setup for development plus the relatively low opportunity cost for a guy that could be the next face of Steeler football, you get the potential for this to be one of the greatest picks in the history of the franchise. Now…we can only hope Drew takes this incredible opportunity and runs with it just like Patrick did in KC. It sure worked out well for them; I’m hoping the Steelers are successful in recreating even a fraction of that success with Drew in the years to come.