WHERE HE’S FROM: Howard is a native of West Chester, Pa., and eventually attended Downingtown West High School, where he also played basketball. Howard spent four seasons at Kansas State before transferring to Ohio State, where he helped lead the Buckeyes to the national championship in 2024. He’ll turn 24 in late September.

WHAT HE’S DONE: Howard, 6-foot-41/8 and 236 pounds, threw for 9,796 yards, with 83 touchdowns and 35 interceptions, in 50 career college games (44 starts). He amassed 4,010 of those yards, with 35 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, in 2024, when he completed 73 percent of his passes. He said he played his best football in his last four games, the four that delivered the national title to OSU. That stretch included Howard throwing for 311 yards with two touchdowns and an interception against Tennessee, for 319 yards and three touchdowns against Oregon, for 281 yards with one touchdown and one interception against Texas, and for 231 yards and two TDs in the National Championship Game against Notre Dame (Howard also rushed for 57 yards against the Irish). NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah assessed Howard’s four-game postseason run as “epic.”

NFL Draft analyst Dane Brugler of The Athletic ranked Howard as the No. 8 quarterback prospect available and gave him a fourth-round grade.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “Howard has a couple plays on each tape that make evaluators question if his decision making and placement are consistent enough for him to be an NFL starter. But he has the physical requirements, intelligence and mental resiliency to stick as a backup and potential spot-starter.” _ Brugler.