Pittsburgh, PA - With soon-to-be Hall of Famer Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger retiring, the big question every Steelers fan wants to know is going to be the quarterback next season. Should the Steelers draft a quarterback? Should they pick one up from free agency? Should they stick with who they have on their roster? Should they trade for one? The Steelers have a lot of choices, but they have to make the right choice because this team has the defense and the offensive weapons to go on a Super Bowl run.

This upcoming draft is not a quarterback-heavy draft like previous last years. There are not that many quarterbacks projected to beget picked in the first round. There are some quarterbacks that the Steelers can draft in the first round. Kenny Pickett from Pitt is a quarterback who the Steelers could potentially draft. He was one of the finalists for the Heisman Trophy. Another quarterback who they have talked to is Malik Willis from Liberty. He had 2,857 yards through the air and 27 passing touchdowns. I could see the Steelers drafting him and sitting him for a year. There are a few other quarterbacks who they could draft, but the question is, do they need to draft one? Their offensive line struggled the whole 2021 season, so they could draft a lineman. They might not have defensive back Joe Haden for the next season, so maybe they draft a defensive back in the first round. In my opinion, I think the Steelers shouldn’t draft a quarterback, especially in the first round. I think they should draft an offensive lineman or a defensive back. If they do decide to draft a quarterback in the first round they should draft Kenny Pickett if he’s still available.

There are many quarterbacks entering free agency. There are many a lot of interesting names who are going to be free agents. Marcus Mariota is a mobile quarterback who is on the Las Vegas Raiders. He played as a backup behind Derek Carr. Mariota could fit well with the Steelers' offensive coordinator Matt Canada's scheme. He has not proven yet that he can be a starting quarterback in the NFL, but maybe he can if the Steelers sign him. Another quarterback is Jameis Winston. He suffered a torn ACL in the 2021 season and couldn’t finish the season. In the seven games he played, the New Orleans Saints record was 5-2.  He has the potential to lead the Steelers to a playoff berth with offensive weapons around him. There are a lot of options that the Steelers can go with, but they don’t have to sign a quarterback. If they do sign one, I think they should pick between Mariota or Jameis Winston.

There is some speculation on quarterbacks in the NFL who might beget traded. Some of those players include Jimmy Goraopolo/49ers, Russell Wilson/Seahawks, Carson Wentz/Colts, Deshaun Watson/Texans, Aaron Rodgers/Packers, and Kirk Cousins/Vikings. These quarterbacks have had a lot of success over the past couple of years and are able to lead a team to success. Some of these players are going to be very challenging to attain to get in a trade because the Steelers don’t have much toa lot to give up. It is going to take a lot of money to either acquire Russell Wilson or Aaron Rodgers. These quarterbacks are excellent veterans in the league. There have been rumors that the Colts don’t want Carson Wentz, so there is a chance that the Steelers can trade for him. The 49ers drafted a quarterback last year in the draft with the 3rd pick. It depends if they are ready to start him or not. Jimmy Goraopolo might beget traded if they decide to start Trey Lance. The Vikings have not gotten anywhere with Kirk Cousins so they might want to trade him and have a fresh start. We really don’t know what the Vikings might do, but don’t be surprised if the Steelers sign Kirk. He finished with over 4,000 passing yards with not-so-good pass protection. Deshaun Watson didn’t play last season because of his sexual assault allegations. Watson has said he wanted out of Houston, and the Steelers could make a move to acquire him. It’s going to be hard to get him because he is a good young quarterback.  The Steelers could make a trade, but it's going to be hard because they can’t afford to give up anything good on their roster for a quarterback. They could give up some draft picks, but I think they should use those picks to rebuild their line.

The Steelers don’t have to do any of those options, they can stick with who they have on their roster. The two quarterbacks who are most likely to be their starter for the next season if they don’t get anyone else are Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins. Mason Rudolph was drafted in the third round of the 2018 draft. He’s 5-4-1 as a starter. He’s been in the position before to play a full season when Ben Roethlisberger got hurt in week 3 of the 2019 NFL season. The only downside of Mason is that when he was a starter they averaged about 13 points. He really had to rely on the defense to help with the game. Dwayne Haskins was drafted in the first round with the 15th pick to the Washington Commanders in 2017. He didn’t do that well in Washington and only lasted three3 years. The Commanders said that Dwayne had a lack of focus there and wasn’t giving it his all. They released Dwayne during the 2020 season, and the Steelers signed him during the 2021 off-season. If the Steelers stick with who they have on the roster, then Mason or Dwayne are going to have to compete for the starting position. If I had to pick between them I would choose Dwayne Haskins. The reason why I’m saying Dwayne is because even though he had a chance to prove if he’s NFL ready in Washington, he was in a bad situation. They didn’t have the superstars that they have in Pittsburgh. He has good talent, and he is with a good head coach in Mike Tomlin. I want to see what he can do with the Steelers as a starter. Mason Rudolph already had his chance and didn’t show us that he can lead the Steelers to the playoffs. I think Dwayne is better than Mason Rudolph talent-wise.

The Steelers have many lots of decisions to make in the off-season. It’s going to be hard to find a quarterback to fill in the spot of a future Hall of Famer Ben Roethlisberger. Ben has done a lot for the Steelers franchise bringing home two SuperBowls. In my opinion, out of all of the choices the Steelers have, I think they should trade for Deshaun Watson. He’s proven himself in the NFL, l and he’s also young. In 2019, Deshaun led the Texans to the AFC Championship, but they lost to the SuperBowl winning team Kansas City Chiefs. If Deshaun is the Steelers quarterback next season, he would do well with all of the offensive weapons around him. I don’t think he will ever be better than Ben, but he will fill in the spot that the Steelers desperately need for their franchise.