The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback room has become a learning ground for several young players. Aaron Rodgers brings decades of NFL experience to a group that includes Will Howard and Drew Allar. His approach to helping younger quarterbacks, however, has a deeper reason than simply passing along football knowledge.
The story goes back to Rodgers’ early years in Green Bay and his difficult experience with Brett Favre.
Will Howard Reveals How Brett Favre Changed Aaron Rodgers’ Approach
Howard has seen firsthand how much Rodgers wants to help the younger quarterbacks around him. According to Howard, Rodgers’ approach comes from remembering what it felt like to enter the NFL behind a quarterback he admired.
“He was in Green Bay and was in a kind of a similar situation with one of his heroes, Brett Favre, who wasn’t always the best to him,” Howard told The Athletic.
This experience appears to have influenced how Rodgers handles his role with Pittsburgh. Rather than keeping his distance from Howard and Allar, the 42-year-old quarterback has embraced the opportunity to share what he has learned throughout his career.
Howard said he recognized the significance of that decision and directly thanked Rodgers for taking a different path.
“I just said, ‘Thank you for giving me what you didn’t have,’” Howard said.
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The comment shows the contrast between Rodgers’ early NFL experience and the environment he is creating in Pittsburgh. When Green Bay drafted Rodgers in 2005, Favre remained the established starter and did not view mentoring the rookie as part of his responsibility.
Favre famously said in 2005, “My contract doesn’t state I have to get him ready to play.”
Rodgers eventually spent three seasons behind Favre before taking over the Packers’ offense in 2008. Their relationship was competitive and often tense, but the two quarterbacks eventually moved beyond that period and developed mutual respect.
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For Howard, the experience has provided more than technical instruction. He sees Rodgers’ willingness to help as something that can influence how he approaches younger players if he gets a long NFL career of his own.
“He wanted to break the cycle and wanted to give back,” Howard said of Rodgers’ mindset.
Howard added, “God willing, I can play for a long time and be able to give back like he did because that went a long way.”
Rodgers’ mentorship will now be tested as Pittsburgh prepares for a preseason meeting with the Packers, the franchise where his relationship with Favre began.
The Steelers also have Mason Rudolph competing with Howard for the backup role, while Allar continues his development as a rookie. This gives Rodgers several younger quarterbacks to influence as he enters his 22nd NFL season, after a respectable 2025 campaign in which he ranked 29th in PFN NFL QB Impact Rankings.
For Howard, though, the value of Rodgers’ guidance reaches beyond mechanics, reads, and preparation. It represents a quarterback choosing to handle a familiar situation differently from the way it was once handled with him.
