The idea of an aging Super Bowl quarterback reclaiming championship old glory with a new team feels it is “too good to be true.” But that’s often not the case. Joe Montana may have come up short, but Peyton Manning and Tom Brady added extra Lombardi Trophies to cases in Denver and Tampa Bay.
- The Steelers tried this in 1958 with Bobby Layne.
And, while Layne didn’t deliver an NFL championship, he did give Pittsburgh its first true taste of winning football at the pro level during his 5 years as the Steelers starting quarterback.
Thus, when Russell Wilson became available last spring, Mike Tomlin wasted little time in snapping him up.
Wilson is a former Super Bowl Champion quarterback who did a lot to reacquaint Steelers fans with above-the-line passing. He wants to play for three or four more years, and he’d like to do it in Pittsburgh.
Would the Steelers be wise to accommodate him? Let’s take a look.
Russell Wilson launches a pass in the 4th quarter. Photo Credit: AP, Chaz Palla, via Tribune-Review
Capsule Profile of Russell Wilson’s Career with the Steelers
Mike Tomlin, Art Rooney II and Omar Khan all began the Steelers 2024 off season by expressing confidence in of Kenny Pickett. Even when Khan proclaimed that he was obligated to do consider any possibility that would help the Steelers win at the NFL combine, it sounded like politically correct GM speak.
- Both perceptions and realities can and do change fast in the NFL.
The Denver Broncos cut Russell Wilson on March 7th. The Steelers signed him on March 12th. They traded Kenny Pickett to Philadelphia on March 15th. (A day later, the Steelers traded for Justin Fields).
Throughout OTAs, Minicamp and the beginning of training camp, Mike Tomlin talked a good game about holding an open quarterback competition. IT sounded good, but everyone knew that Russell Wilson was Tomlin’s man. Injuries kept Wilson out of circulation for much of the summer, but he finished the summer as the starter. Until he got hurt again before the season, forcing him to watch the first 6 games.
Despite Justin Fields’ 4-2 record as a starter, Mike Tomlin promoted Wilson in week 7, and his inaugural victory against the Jets showed why. The Steelers for the first time since Ben Roethlisberger’s elbow injury, suddenly had a potent passing attack.
Russell Wilson rolls out in his first start with the Steelers. Photo Credit: Chaz Palla, Tribune-Review
Despite a dearth of offensive weapons, not to mention a running game that simply could not get into a groove, Wilson led the Steelers to 6 wins in his first 7 starts.
Yet, as citizens of Steelers Nation shifted their attention from finishing Thanksgiving leftovers to Christmas shopping, the Steelers closed the 2024 season 5 straight losses, including a ridiculing in the playoffs at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens.
The Case for the Steelers Resigning Russell Wilson
Was there anyone who wasn’t excited to see a true NFL quarterback back under center in Pittsburgh? Russell Wilson is not the player he was 10 years ago, but in 2024 he gave the Steelers far better quarterback play than they even glimpsed under Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph or even Justin Fields.
- Beyond his on-the-field exploits, Russell Wilson acted as true leader.
Wilson was a leader on the field, on the sidelines, in the locker room and throughout the community of Pittsburgh. On what is one of the NFL’s youngest offenses, Wilson provided an adult, mature presence that everyone feels but that no one could measure.
- Sure, Wilson started each of those 5 season-ending losses.
And yes, critics can point several statistics that show how Wilson’s play dipped during that stretch. But facts and figures are meaningless without context. Wilson was missing his only true starting caliber NFL wide out in George Pickens during the losing streak. The offensive line was also faltering.
Moreover, most of his mistakes came from trying to lift the team on his back, when it was obvious that he didn’t have the supporting cast needed to allow that effort to be successful. Wilson wants to stay in Pittsburgh and the fit feels natural.
The Case Against the Steelers Resigning Russell Wilson
Sure, Russell Wilson had the Steelers at 10-3 and atop the AFC North. But, for the second time, both perceptions and realities can and do change fast in the NFL.
Yeah, it’s easy and even tempting to conclude, “…But with Pickens out who other than Pat Freiermuth did Wilson have to throw to?” Missing Pickens certainly hurt Wilson, but that’s no reason to let him off the hook as D.I. Davis aka HeinzSight explained on Steel City Insider’s message board:
They [the Eagles] would flood the short zones with six underneath defenders. Baltimore borrowed that. Eagles when in split safeties, they knew Wilson had a quick clock and if he looked to one side post snap, they didn’t have to defend the other half. If Wilson’s eyes went to one side, the opposite side safety would abandon his half and go look for work playside like a robber. Chiefs borrowed that, and got that pick in the EZ as a result. Eagles really made it a mission to disguise their coverages presnap.
Most offenses can wait out a defense by going hurry up. Defenses don’t want to get caught exposed in transition from one look to the other, so they always blink first in that game of chicken. Not vs Wilson. Defenses didn’t care if it left coverage gaps or receivers open, because Wilson would not throw intermediate. By not throwing intermediate, it allowed defends to hold their disguises to the snap. They had plenty of time to robot from standing in the A gap at the snap all the way to deep half.
That’s a pretty X’s and O’s heavy analysis. But its more pedestrian translation drives home the point: Philadelphia, Baltimore and Kansas City all have championship-caliber defenses.
And they completely befuddled Wilson.
Curtain’s Call on the Steelers and Russell Wilson
It says here that even if D.I. Davis’ critiques of Wilson are correct, Russell Wilson still has plenty left in the tank and that the Pittsburgh Steelers can win a lot of games with him.
The Steelers decision on Russell Wilson comes down to as much as how they see themselves as it does to how they see him. When the Steelers reached the 10-3 mark, they didn’t look too be far from establishing themselves as contenders.
Russell Wilson is sacked. Photo Credit: Chaz Palla, Tribune-Review
But when tested by the NFL’s best, (and Cincinnati probably had the NFL’s best offense by season’s end) the Steelers came up choto (there’s that Argentine slang again, choto means coming up short, both practically and anatomically).
If the Steelers brain trust really does think that the rest of the roster is “not that far off” from contending, then they should resign Russell Wilson, beef up the weapons at his disposal, fortify the defense and make a run.
If the Steelers don’t see themselves as being “a player or two away” from making a run, then should thank Russell Wilson for his effort and move on.
- Reading the Tea Leaves out of the South Side, the Steelers are leaning towards Fields over Wilson.
For my money, that’s probably the wise football decision. But, for the third and final time, both perceptions and realities can and do change fast in the NFL.
