Drew Allar, the Steelers' third-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, is focused on improving his footwork under coaches Mike McCarthy and Tom Arth. He aims to adapt to the West Coast offense to enhance his rhythm, speed, and accuracy.
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PITTSBURGH -- Drew Allar came to Pittsburgh in his pre-draft meeting emphasizing footwork, and knowing it was going to be the biggest piece of improving his game with the Steelers.
Allar, who was the Steelersâ first third round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, visibly was working with Mike McCarthy and quarterbacks coach Tom Arth on footwork and drilling the basics of McCarthyâs scheme.
McCarthyâs scheme, the West Coast offense, is tweaking Allarâs footwork to get him into a better rhythm so he can play faster and throw with better accuracy.
âItâs really just about tweaking things,â Allar said after rookie minicamp practice. âThereâs a lot of different philosophies. Every coach probably teaches footwork a little bit different and with Coach McCarthy, he has his beliefs. Theyâve shown they work very well with who he has been around. Itâs about me buying into that and getting it as consistent as possible. With all the QBs heâs worked with, theyâve had a tremendous amount of success. But I have to start from the ground up.â
McCarthy acknowledged the Steelers were putting Allar through the âQB schoolâ which he does every single offseason. It helped produce Aaron Rodgers into the four-time MVP he became at the NFL level, and now they hope the same with Allar.
The Steelers had Allar as the only quarterback at rookie minicamp, and that was intentional to give him as much on his plate as possible, both mentally and physically.
âWe did, and we pushed him. To go 35 snaps in a team drill, thatâs pushing it, but he handled it. If your quarterback canât handle it, then you donât get to go to the speed and the tempo and the pre-snap that we were able to go. I thought Drew did a hell of a job,â McCarthy said.
The next few weeks and months for Allar will be about getting to know McCarthyâs fundamentals and adding them to his tool chest.
The Steelers want to see that growth, too, and the tweaks are what they believe will allow Allar to reach his ceiling as a player.
âEverybody teaches footwork a little differently,â McCarthy said. âEverybody has a system of offense and how you tie your quarterback â particularly in the pass game â to that. So thereâs a lot of work there. We were able to adjust some fundamentals that we think will help him.â
Drew Allar is the Steelers' rookie quarterback, selected in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, focusing on improving his footwork and adapting to the team's offensive scheme.
Drew Allar is learning the West Coast offense under head coach Mike McCarthy and quarterbacks coach Tom Arth.
Drew Allar is working with coaches on footwork drills to enhance his rhythm and accuracy as part of his development in the Steelers' offense.
Expectations for Drew Allar include mastering the fundamentals of the West Coast offense and demonstrating improved performance through consistent footwork and decision-making.
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Allar is always tough on himself. He has taken the blame for many of his shortcomings, and when teams asked him what he believed his struggles could be contributed to, he was the first two point out his footwork.
âCoach [Tom] Arth and Coach [Mike] McCarthy and really the whole staff, and to come up with a detailed plan on how I can get better and what I should be working on by myself and spending extra time in the facility and things of that nature to put myself in a position where I can become the best player that I possibly can be. So thatâs going to be my number one goal. Just acclimating myself to the team and just trying to find ways for myself to get better and improve on that in the future,â Allar said.
Allar finished his Penn State career with 7,402 passing yards, 61 touchdown passes, 620 completions and a completion percentage of 63.1. He now looks to ascend up the Steelersâ depth chart and improve upon some ills that made him become a third round quarterback rather than a first round pick.
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