Black & Yellow | Pittsburgh Steelers M26

[Caesar]

AR15 returned!

See what happens when Mike Tomlin isn't enforcing the culture anymore?

[djp73]

[redsox907]

I made the decision middle of last year that something was going to happen this season to shake things up. I had different things thought up depending on how far we went in the playoffs. If we went to the SB, it was nuclear. I had something even crazier planed if we won it all

might as well run with Barnett/Howard then because whoever you trade for/sign will be similarly rated as Richardson when you first got him anyway

yeah the two QBs I listed as potential trades are 72 and 70 respectively, with Howard being a 73. we're going to sign a FA QB and roll with what we've got

AR15 returned!

See what happens when Mike Tomlin isn't enforcing the culture anymore?

How many other Steelers are suddenly going to become locker room problems

DK? TJ? RAMSEY!?

Gotta add some flavor

[redsox907]

Pittsburgh Steelers Sign Veteran Gardner Minshew II

Pittsburgh, PA. - The Pittsburgh Steelers moved quickly to address their quarterback depth Saturday, announcing the signing of veteran Gardner Minshew II to a one-year contract. The move comes less than a week after the arrest of franchise quarterback Anthony Richardson left the organization scrambling at the position just days before the start of training camp.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Minshew, 32, brings a familiarity with the Steelers' offensive system that first-year head coach Nathan Scheelhaase identified as a primary factor in the decision.

"Gardner is a guy who is familiar with the system we intend to run, and I think that's crucial for a guy joining the roster just three days before the start of fall camp," Scheelhaase said Saturday. "There wasn't a long runway here. We needed someone who could step in and get up to speed quickly, and Gardner checks that box."

Scheelhaase spent the 2026 season as passing game coordinator with the Los Angeles Rams, where Minshew served as the starting quarterback following the retirement of Matthew Stafford. Minshew threw for 4,032 yards and 23 touchdowns that season before being relegated to a backup role after the Rams signed Justin Fields following the 2026 season. The familiarity between coach and quarterback, sources told ESPN, was a significant factor in Pittsburgh moving on Minshew ahead of other available options.

With Richardson on the Commissioner's Exempt List and training camp opening Tuesday, Minshew projects as the frontrunner to open the 2028 season as Pittsburgh's starter, with fourth-year pro Will Howard pushing for the job throughout the preseason.

When a reporter lightheartedly asked Scheelhaase whether he had considered reaching out to Matthew Stafford about a potential comeback, the first-year head coach didn't miss a beat.

"Why — did he tell you he was ready?" Scheelhaase said with a grin before quickly waving off the suggestion. "No. I have not and will not be making that call."

The Steelers open training camp Tuesday, July 23rd at their facility in Pittsburgh.

[djp73]

i do like Minshew

[Soapy]

brother eww

[JohnStJohn1987]

Minshew time to shine!

[redsox907]

i do like Minshew

brother eww

signing for story purposes mainly. It would make sense for Scheelhaase to find someone familiar with his system

Minshew time to shine!

my money is still on Howard to win out, but we'll see

maybe we'll get lucky and someone will cut a dece starter at roster cuts

[redsox907]

Pittsburgh Steelers 2028 Position Battles In Camp and Preseason

Latrobe, PA. - The Pittsburgh Steelers arrived at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe Tuesday morning to open training camp for the 2028 season, and the mood is complicated.

On paper, this is still a championship caliber roster. The talent is there. The coaching staff is experienced and well constructed around first year head coach Nathan Scheelhaase. The offseason additions were shrewd — the signing of cornerback Cooper DeJean from Philadelphia headline a free agency period that was modest but purposeful, and the Steelers followed it with what league evaluators widely regarded as one of the strongest drafts in the NFL this cycle, addressing multiple positions of need while still managing to trade back with Seattle and preserve capital heading into next year.

Everything was pointing toward Pittsburgh being the odds-on favorite to return to the Super Bowl for a third consecutive season.

Then Anthony Richardson was arrested on multiple felony charges in Indianapolis on July 14th, placed on the Commissioner's Exempt List, and the calculus changed overnight. A roster built to compete for a championship is now operating without the two-time MVP who made it all possible. What follows is a look at the position battles Scheelhaase and his staff will be sorting through over the next four weeks of preseason play — starting with the most obvious one.

Position Battles

Quarterback
QB Gardner Minshew II vs Will Howard

There is no sugarcoating the situation. Replacing Anthony Richardson — the reigning two-time MVP, Super Bowl champion, and the engine of everything the Steelers have built offensively over the past two seasons — is an impossible task. The question isn't whether someone can replace him. The question is who gives Pittsburgh the best chance to be functional and competitive while Richardson's legal situation plays out.

Gardner Minshew II enters camp as the frontrunner by virtue of experience and familiarity. Scheelhaase coached Minshew directly during their time together with the Los Angeles Rams in 2026, where Minshew threw for over 4,000 yards and 31 touchdowns in his lone season as a starter under Sean McVay. The wins didn't follow — the Rams stumbled to a 3-14 record that year — but Minshew's command of the system Scheelhaase is installing in Pittsburgh is a genuine and significant advantage given the compressed timeline.

Will Howard, meanwhile, represents the unknown quantity. The fourth-year pro out of Ohio State won a national championship with the Buckeyes before Pittsburgh selected him in the sixth round of the 2025 draft, but his NFL resume remains thin. His most extended look came in Week 18 of last season when Richardson was resting ahead of the playoffs — Howard completed passes for 212 yards and two touchdowns against Buffalo, with the defense ultimately sealing the win in overtime. It was encouraging, but one low-stakes late-season start is a limited foundation to build a Super Bowl defense around.

Sources close to the organization told ESPN that both Minshew and Howard will receive extensive first-team reps throughout camp, as will third-string option Alonza Barnett III. Scheelhaase has made clear internally that nothing is predetermined and that the preseason will be used to genuinely evaluate all available options.

Safety
FS Alohi Gilman vs SS Jermaine Ward

Alohi Gilman entered the offseason as a cap casualty candidate and survived — but surviving the roster cut and holding onto his starting job are two different things. The Steelers used a late first-round pick on Ole Miss safety Jermaine Ward, widely considered the consensus top safety in this year's draft, and his fall to 31st overall raised eyebrows across the league. Ward's motor, instincts, and range drew rave reviews throughout the pre-draft process, and by all accounts he did nothing to diminish that reputation during rookie minicamp.

"I'm here to prove everyone wrong," Ward said after being selected, a comment that resonated with a coaching staff that values exactly that mentality. If he carries his minicamp momentum into the preseason, Scheelhaase may find it difficult to keep him off the field Week 1 regardless of what that means for the incumbent starter.

Kick Return
Joshiah Trader vs Deebo Samuel Sr vs Kendrick Law

KaVonte Turpin was one of the more dynamic returners in the league during the Steelers' Super Bowl run in 2026, but a down 2027 campaign led to his release in the offseason. Pittsburgh enters camp without a clear replacement and is expected to use the preseason to audition several candidates for the role.

Deebo Samuel, signed in the offseason as a veteran fourth receiver, was always expected to contribute on special teams as well — the question is whether that contribution takes the form of regular return duties or situational deployment. Both Josiah Trader and Kendrick Law bring the speed and elusiveness teams covet in returners, and the most likely outcome is a split arrangement with Samuel handling punts on occasion while Trader and Law divide kick return responsibilities based on matchup and game situation.

The Steelers open preseason play later this month when the Los Angeles Rams head to Acrisure Stadium for Week 1. For a franchise that has played in back-to-back Super Bowls, the margin for error feels both enormous and razor thin at the same time — a reflection of just how much has changed in the eleven days since Anthony Richardson's arrest turned the NFL world upside down.

[djp73]

DEEBO!