The Pittsburgh Steelers, led by team president and owner Art Rooney II, head coach Mike Tomlin and GM Omar Khan can state all they want that it will be a fair, open competition this offseason between third-year quarterback Kenny Pickett and veteran Russell Wilson, who plans to sign with the Steelers on Wednesday at the start of the new league year.
They can give all the lip service they want about believing in Pickett as a franchise quarterback moving forward. They can state they have “full faith” in Pickett, like Khan did at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine.
Their actions speak much louder than their words.
That will be the case this summer, too, as Wilson and Pickett battle it out in a QB “competition” during Organized Team Activities and minicamp at the South Side facility and then training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe. It’s not going to be a true competition, though, much like the competition between Mitch Trubisky, Mason Rudolph and Pickett in 2022 leading up to the start of the season wasn’t a true competition.
Nor should it be this summer.
It’s Russell Wilson’s job. The Steelers are just going to say all the right things this summer though. It should be Wilson’s job, period.
Again, their actions speak louder than their words.
Before the legal tampering period opened up, the Steelers pounced on the big-name quarterback for the veteran minimum of just $1.21 million due to the offset language in his contract with the Denver Broncos, who took an $85 million dead cap charge to send him packing.
He’s a future Hall of Fame quarterback with a great resume. Though his time with the Broncos the last two seasons was filled with more lows than highs and led to his benching in a contract dispute, there’s no denying his talent level overall. Yes, he’s taken a step back slightly and isn’t as mobile as he once was, but he still throws a great deep ball and is a very accurate passer.
You don’t bring in a quarterback the stature of Wilson and put him in a “competition” with an unaccomplished young quarterback like Pickett, who struggled mightily in 2023 and then was ultimately benched when healthy late in the season for Mason Rudolph. True competition for Pickett would have been a signing of Ryan Tannehill, the re-signing of Rudolph, or the addition of someone like a Jacoby Brissett or a Drew Lock in free agency.
Not Russell Wilson.
Again, all the right things can be said, but here’s the fact of the matter: Wilson has the resume and the productivity to step in immediately as the true No. 1. He threw for 3,070 yards last season with 26 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. He was spectacular in the Red Zone, too, leading the NFL in passer rating in the money area at 118.5, and had the best Pro Football Focus grade among all QBs in the NFL last season in the Red Zone at 91.6.
He was also outstanding on play-action passing, something that will be a major staple in new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s scheme. Last season, Wilson had a 115.2 passer rating on play-action throws. Though he didn’t target the middle of the field much — just 5.8% of the time in 2023 — he is a good fit for Smith’s scheme overall.
Pickett might be, too. But this isn’t going to be a true competition. Wilson enters with a leg up due to his resume and reputation, while Pickett has a great deal to prove, not only to the Steelers, but to the entire NFL as a pro-caliber quarterback. The Steelers aren’t making a move for Wilson to have him sit on the bench, period, and Wilson wasn’t signing with the Black and Gold without some sort of guaranteed shot at starting.
The push of it being a “competition” is at least that outward guarantee.
This is Russell Wilson’s job though, period. It will be easier to start the season with Wilson as the starter, and if things go haywire the Steelers can then turn to Pickett, rather than having Pickett open the year as the starter and constantly be looking over his shoulder with Wilson sitting there.
That was the case with Trubisky in 2022 with the first-round pick in Pickett sitting there itching to go, and look how that turned out. It’s a different level of talent now, but similar circumstance for Tomlin. Hopefully he’s learned from it.
Just don’t buy into the “competition” talk. That’s a farce.
