Ryan Clark pleads with Steelers to tank, draft Arch Manning or Garrett Nussmeier

The George Pickens trade has left the Pittsburgh Steelers with questions about the team’s future. One of those is how it’s going to impact Aaron Rodgers‘ decision on whether or not to play for the Steelers this upcoming season.

Now, Ryan Clark, who won a Super Bowl with Pittsburgh, expects Rodgers not to find Pittsburgh as appealing. So, if he chooses not to go there, it’s time for the Steelers to tank for either Texas quarterback Arch Manning or LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier.

“To me, this isn’t a team that’s ready to compete,” Ryan Clark said on Get Up. “Which I’m fine with because I felt like you didn’t make a decision to get a quarterback in the draft. Maybe your evaluation was that none of them were good enough and that Aaron Rodgers was better, but if you’re gonna suck. Suck all the way. Let’s go get Arch or let’s go get Nussmeier.”

Arch Manning is the grandson of Archie Manning and the nephew of Peyton and Eli Manning. A highly-touted prospect, he is expected to take over as the starting quarterback at Texas in his upcoming junior season there. If he plays up to expectations, he’ll likely be a high pick if he chooses to enter the NFL Draft. Garrett Nussmeier, meanwhile, is going into his fifth college season and his second year as the starting quarterback at LSU. Considered a potential first round pick in 2026, he has the opportunity to make an impression for himself next season.

Ultimately, the Steelers could still go and land Aaron Rodgers. Part of that could come from adding more players to make Pittsburgh seem more appealing. However, Ryan Clark thinks that the Steelers need to avoid that and make sure they’re picking high enough to land a top-tier quarterback.

“Let’s get somebody that can really go,” Clark said. “But don’t add more to this team and try to get Aaron Rodgers and be mediocre enough to not pick high.”

Many expected the Steelers to draft Shedeur Sanders or another potential starting quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft. In the end, they would select Will Howard in the sixth round of the draft, though he isn’t widely considered a long-term solution at the position.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have drafted six quarterbacks in the first round in the history of the program. The most recent of those picks was Kenny Pickett in 2022. The last time that they picked a quarterback in the top 10 was Terry Bradshaw in 1970, who went first overall in that year’s draft.