For many in sports, the saying it's not where you start, but where you finish that holds true
For sixth-round draft pick Will Howard, the quarterback from Ohio State, he has his own saying.
And it's one that rings just as true.
"It's not about when, it's about where," said Howard.
It didn't matter to Howard what round he was selected during the 2025 NFL Draft. What mattered to him was landing with a team where he felt comfortable with the coaching staff, the team makeup and where he knew he could fit into the offensive scheme.
"Throughout the whole draft process, everyone was telling me you've got to end up in the right situation," said Howard. "It's hard to see that while you're going through it, wondering to yourself what is the right situation. At times I didn't know.
"My mom has always told me about different situations in life, when you know, you know. And I know Pittsburgh is the right spot. When I talked to Coach (Mike) Tomlin, when I talked to (general manager) Omar (Khan), when I talked to everybody, I knew there wasn't a better situation. I knew it was the right spot for me."
Pittsburgh is the right spot for Howard, just like Ohio State was the perfect place for him to close out his college career.
Howard spent one season playing for the Buckeyes after starting his college career at Kansas State. He appeared in a total of 50 games in his college career, completing 767 of 1,202 passes, 63.8%, for 9,796 yards, 83 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
Howard started all 16 games for the Buckeyes, leading them to a school record 14 wins and the College Football Playoff National Championship. He completed 309 of 423 passes for 4,010 yards and 35 touchdowns. His completion percentage was a career and school record, also setting an Ohio State record with eight games with at least an 80% completion percentage.
Among the honors Howard won in 2024 were the Most Valuable Player in the win over Texas in the Cotton Bowl and the win over Notre Dame in the CFP National Championship.
"Going to Ohio State got me much more prepared for this next level," said Howard. "I was ready to enter the draft last year and I was fully prepared to come out and do the draft process and go through everything that comes with entering the draft. I was ready for it. But I just felt like I wasn't quite where I wanted to be. I felt like I wanted to add a little more development. I wanted to learn more. I wanted to get myself more prepared for the next level.
"I felt like I hadn't accomplished all that I felt I could. When I entered the transfer portal, I was telling teams my two goals were winning a national championship and developing as a player. And I think coming to Ohio State was the best decision I ever made. It was a no-brainer for me when I first started talking to Coach (Ryan) Day. I looked at it as a professional step in my journey. I grew as a man at Kansas State, but I grew as a football player at Ohio State. I feel like that's really a good way of painting my journey.
"I'm so thankful I went to Ohio State and got that experience playing for a program that is very similar to an NFL franchise. That was what I wanted. I didn't want to just go into the NFL blind and not have played at the highest level that I could have possibly played at. It got me so much more prepared for this level."
While Howard had a toughness about him throughout his entire college career, it's something that really shined through last season with the Buckeyes, and it's something he takes pride in bringing to the table, especially at a position where toughness isn't always a top qualification.
"That is one of the things I like to hang my hat on," said Howard. "That grit and toughness is something I am proud of. I am not a guy who is super emotional, but I wear my heart on my sleeve. When it comes to something that I'm passionate about, like last year at Ohio State I was hooting and hollering, and I'm usually a pretty tame guy during games. But last year brought a different side of me out. I've always been intense. I've been a fierce competitor, but there's something about bringing that attitude and that fire to a locker room that I think is a big reason why we had success last year.
"I pride myself on my passion and my love for the game, my love for my teammates."
That love of teammates is just a small sampling of what Howard loves about football. Because honestly there isn't anything about the game he doesn't love.
"There is nothing like it," said Howard. "There is nothing like going out there with your brothers for the competition. Football has brought me a lot of great things and great successes, but there's nothing like going out there in the summer with your brothers and fighting through a summer workout, fall practice, just everything.
"I cherish those memories. There's nothing like football. It's different. Everybody that plays it is different. Pretty much everything I've learned in life I somehow can relate it back to football."
