For what feels like the tenth time over since losing Ben Roethlisberger, the Pittsburgh Steelers are entering the 2026 offseason and NFL Draft cycle in quarterback limbo.
Veteran QB Aaron Rodgers has left the door open to a return to Pittsburgh, but also hasn’t let anyone forget he’s 42 years old and on a one-year deal. Regardless of his future, the Steelers need to keep an eye on their own, and that starts with the 2026 NFL Draft.
That said, Mike Tomlin’s squad is in a precarious place. They pick too late to snag one of Fernando Mendoza and Dante Moore. Ty Simpson, the only QB in their range in Round 1, could ultimately return to school. Thus, these middle-round targets loom large, led by two terrific Division II products.
Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss
Trinidad Chambliss is the talk of the town after his legendary performance in Ole Miss’ 39-34 victory over the Georgia Bulldogs in the CFB Playoff Quarterfinals.
It’s true: Chambliss put the team on his back to take down Kirby Smart’s CFB Playoff titans, but it’s also true that Chambliss was the real deal before this. He was a Harlon Hill finalist and Division II Champion at Ferris State, and accrued an elite PFSN QB Impact Score of 90.3 even before the Rebels’ Round 2 matchup.
The numbers aren’t a mirage; Chambliss has been more than exceedingly efficient since taking over for Austin Simmons as the starter. There’s an argument to make that he’s been the best QB in the vaunted SEC, and there’s reason to be excited for his evaluation, too.
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At 6’1″, 200 pounds, Chambliss is around average size, with an average arm. Those factors alone complicated any eventual starter projections, but he’s a high-octane athlete with hyper-elite creative instincts, and he can operate on time in-structure, anticipate over the middle, and throw with touch and situational precision.
Chambliss is a unique blend of cerebral poise, accuracy, and timing sense, and new-age athleticism and creative freedom, and he’s well-known as a phenomenal leader and locker room presence. For Pittsburgh, he’d be an optimal target outside of the first two rounds.
Jack Strand, MSU Moorhead
In a wide open 2026 NFL Draft QB class, MSU Moorhead’s Jack Strand is one of the biggest sleepers present. And in my personal opinion, he has the potential to surprise a lot of people if he lands in the right spot.
Much like Chambliss last year at Ferris State, Strand set himself apart by excelling at the Division II level, earning a finalist spot in the race for the Harlon Hill Trophy. At MSU Moorhead, he totaled 13,161 yards, 126 touchdowns, and 50 interceptions in four years as a starter.
I believe in you Aaron Rodgers, I know you got one more in you🥲 pic.twitter.com/Scy1vJjepZ
— VintageAaronRodgers (@VentageArod) January 4, 2026
At 6’5″, 240 pounds, Strand passes the eye test with his prototypical frame, and catches you off-guard with the velocity he can generate to multiple ranges of the field, with countless arm angles. He’s also a stellar athlete at his size, who can sense pressure, scramble, move the pocket, and produce on the ground when he needs to.
Leaping from Division II to the NFL will be an adjustment for Strand, and he has room to fine-tune his progression work post-snap a bit more, but he has shown he can discern coverage looks, make full-field reads, and throw with anticipation, and his competitive toughness is tantalizing.
I’m comfortable going on the record saying Strand has NFL starter upside if he can keep refining his mechanics and adjust to the professional play pace. For the Steelers, he’s a mid-round option worth knowing.
Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
There was a time when Garrett Nussmeier was included in early-round QB conversations, but those times have faded. Nussmeier, alongside the LSU Tigers as a whole, regressed in 2025, dropping his PFSN QB Impact score from 81.6 to 75.9.
On film, Nussmeier’s strengths proved inconsistent at best, while his flaws proved all too debilitating for a QB with NFL starter aspirations.
The son of New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier, Garrett has a clear mind for the game and can operate as a true field general pre-snap. However, lapses in decision-making and poor situational precision overshadow flashes of mental brilliance, and Nussmeier isn’t nearly the physical talent to compensate.
At a listed 6’1″, 205 pounds, Nussmeier is around the same size as Chambliss, but he doesn’t come close to Chambliss as an athlete or creator. To Nussmeier’s credit, he has an above-average arm for his size, with great arm elasticity and a crafty improvisational tool kit.
The comparison was made between Nussmeier and Tony Romo at times earlier in the cycle, but in my opinion, Nussmeier’s best NFL outcome resembles that of Andy Dalton. He might never be the QB to take you over the hump, but he has the processing, gamer element, and crafty, traits-defying creative utility to potentially earn a longer stint as a QB1.
Cade Klubnik, Clemson
Cade Klubnik was a summer scouting favorite in the lead-up to the 2026 NFL Draft cycle, and there’s still very clear talent present. After all, Klubnik was a five-star recruit, a historic producer at Westlake High School, and threw 36 touchdowns to just six INTs in 2024.
All this being said, the 2025 season featured a visible regression for Klubnik, or perhaps a regression to the mean. His PFSN QB Impact score dropped from 82.1 to 79.2, he struggled to string together quality games in a weak ACC, and his 2026 NFL Draft stock tanked as a result.
Klubnik still has middle-round appeal, nonetheless, and his acceptance of an invite to the East-West Shrine Bowl is proof that interest remains for the Tigers’ passer. But he has a lot to prove heading into the pre-draft process, if he wants to earn confidence as a potential starter.
At around 6’2″, 205 pounds, Klubnik isn’t sturdily built, nor does he have a rocket arm. That said, Klubnik is a quick and malleable athlete with all-encompassing angle freedom, platform diversity, and the passing versatility to throw with blistering heat or feathery touch.
The mental component is the biggest question mark for Klubnik, and the most important. I saw flashes of quality leverage IQ and pre-snap recognition in 2024, but the moving pieces looked too fast for him more often than not in 2025. Time on a bench at the NFL level could help him re-orient, but taking live NFL reps is a daunting proposition for Klubnik right now.
Purely physically, Klubnik bears some resemblance to Bo Nix, but Nix operated at a higher level mentally coming out, and had more consistent accuracy. If the Steelers want to sell themselves on Klubnik, that’s the vision, but Klubnik has work to do before he can manifest that outcome.
Taylen Green, Arkansas
If the Steelers want to invest purely in physical tools, Arkansas’ Taylen Green is the middle-round upside gamble of the 2026 NFL Draft class.
Standing at 6’6″, 225 pounds, Green has effortless arm talent, velocity generation, and elasticity, and he’s an elite athlete with linear speed and lateral agility; across his four-year starting career, he ran for 2,403 yards and 35 touchdowns.
The passing, of course, is what will earn Green a potential starting opportunity if he can further his development. But unfortunately, the passing still has a ways to go.
Green never showed dramatic growth across his four-year collegiate career. There are glimpses of high-level touch and situational placement on film, but his processing profile is still fairly rudimentary, his accuracy can be inconsistent, and he remains prone to very poor decisions in pressure situations and negative game scripts.
The silver lining with Green? When he’s able to isolate halves of the field or single pieces to draw out of short windows as a scrambler, he’s proven he can manipulate defenders and open the field. And despite middling raw production, he achieved his best career PFSN QB impact score by far in 2025, with a figure of 84.9.
There’s a case to make that Green never got the proper support at Arkansas, after transferring from Boise State. And onlookers seeking to see hope for Green can look at Malik Willis.
Willis was a tools-rich mid-round pick who at first struggled in the NFL, but once he landed in the right place for his development and had time to re-orient, he emerged as a high-quality spot-starter in 2024 and 2025, and will likely earn another starting opportunity in the NFL soon. Pittsburgh could be one such team vying for his services.
But only one team can claim Willis. Middle-round QB options, on the other hand, are more numerous. If the Steelers so pleased, they could draft Green, ride out Rodgers, Mason Rudolph, or Will Howard as a bridge, and let Green develop behind the scenes with his elite physical makeup.
Other Names to Know in the 2026 NFL Draft QB Class
- Cole Payton, North Dakota State
- Sawyer Robertson, Baylor
- Carson Beck, Miami (FL)
- Joe Fagnano, UConn
- Drew Allar, Penn State
