Steelers Now
NFL analyst Rich Eisen believes the Pittsburgh Steelers should go after one of the upcoming free agent quarterbacks.
It remains to be seen who the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback will be for the 2026 season. Many believe that player will come via the 2026 NFL Draft while others think he is already on the roster.
NFL analyst Rich Eisen disagrees with both of those routes, though, as he recently made the case for upcoming free agent quarterback Malik Willis.
“Malik Willis. Go get him,” Eisen said on The Rich Eisen Show. “You go get him. You tell [Mike] McCarthy, ‘Hey, the guy who succeeded you in Green Bay has done a lot of great work with him already. You continue it.’ That might be the move.”
Willis, 26, has had somewhat of a career resurgence since joining the Packers in 2024. Over the last two seasons, he has thrown for 972 yards, six touchdowns and zero interceptions in 11 games. He’s also added another 261 yards and three scores on the ground.
However, Willis hasn’t always been viewed as a starting-caliber quarterback. He struggled mightily after starting his career as a third-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans.
In eight games as a rookie, Willis threw for just 276 yards, zero touchdowns and three interceptions, and then barely saw the field in 2023.
Willis was traded to the Packers for a seventh-round pick ahead of the 2024 season, and it turned out to be the best thing for his career.
His rookie contract is set to expire following the 2025 season, making him a free agent, and it’s safe to say he’ll have at least a few suitors once he finally hits the open market.
It’s unclear what Willis will demand, but he should certainly be among the options Pittsburgh considers this offseason.
A native of College Park, Georgia, Willis played collegiately at Auburn (2017-18) and Liberty, where he threw for 5,117 yards and 48 touchdowns and rushed for 1,822 yards and 27 touchdowns from 2020-21.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Analyst Pushes Steelers to Target Rising Star QB in Free Agency
