Steelers draft QB with Rodgers future still unclear

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected quarterback Drew Allar on day two of the NFL Draft amid uncertainty over the future of Aaron Rodgers.

The NFL's four-time Most Valuable Player is yet to confirm if he will spend a second year with the Steelers after helping them reach last season's play-offs.

The team has not given 42-year-old Rodgers a deadline, but owner Art Rooney II said he expected a decision before the draft.

General manager Omar Khan said "all options are on the table" heading into the draft, which Pittsburgh is hosting, and the Steelers took Allar with their third pick, the 76th overall - slightly earlier than had been projected for the 6ft 5in quarterback.

A record 260,000 fans attended day two of the draft on Friday. Although the Steelers claimed wide receiver Germie Bernard in the second round, Allar's selection in the third was met with the biggest cheer of the day.

The 22-year-old was the top-ranked QB recruit in 2022 and has spent four years with local college Penn State but missed the end of last season with a broken ankle.

He will join a quarterback room that includes veteran back-up Mason Rudolph and last year's sixth-round pick Will Howard.

Childhood friends drafted minutes apart

Image caption,

Kayden McDonald helped Ohio State become national champions in 2024

Carson Beck was also drafted earlier than expected as the Arizona Cardinals made him the third quarterback to be drafted with the 65th pick.

Kayden McDonald and Avieon Terrell were childhood friends in Atlanta and they were drafted 12 picks apart in the second round.

McDonald was the last player remaining in the green room and made an emotional walk to the stage after the Houston Texans traded up to take the tackle with the 36th pick and add him to the NFL's best defence.

"I knew I was supposed to be here," said the 21-year-old. "I came from nothing so this is crazy to me."

Shortly after, cornerback Terrell was not only drafted by his hometown team but the same team as his older brother. After getting off the phone to the Falcons, Avieon immediately hugged brother AJ, a first-round pick by Atlanta in 2020.