Will Howard helped lead the Ohio State Buckeyes to a College Football Playoff National Championship. He plans to find the same success in the NFL.
The Pennsylvanian native said on a recent episode of Hey Rookie: Welcome to the NFL that he plans on making any team that passes on him regret it.
"I feel like my whole career I've been overlooked," Howard said. "I didn't have an offer from Pitt, I didn't have an offer from Syracuse, I didn't have an offer from Boston College, Penn State, Duke, Carolina. None of those schools offered me. I was trying for years. And I went to Kansas State and said, 'I want to prove those people wrong.' I hope Penn State looks back and says 'Damn, we missed out on Will Howard.'"
Howard starred for Kansas State, earning the starting role, and was named second-team All-Big 12 in 2023. He transferred to Ohio State in 2024, earning third-team All-Big 10 honors, and was named the CFP National Championship offensive MVP.
"You know, when I get to the NFL, I don't want you guys to miss out on me," Howard said. "Because every single team that picks a quarterback in front of me, I'm going to make it my mission to make sure that they regret not picking me."
Howard added: "Draft me. Draft me, or you'll regret it."
It's the type of mentality every prospect should have entering the draft. It's the mindset teams like to hear from a player, particularly a quarterback. It's also not a new idea. Plenty of players have felt similarly with mixed results -- Josh Rosen famously said he would make the nine teams that passed on him regret it (he did not).
A projected mid-round prospect, Howard enters the NFL with some tools to become a productive player. He's got the size, mobility and experience to work in the right system. However, there are also questions about his ball placement and decision-making that he'll have to work on to prove every team that passes on him wrong.
