According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac, the Pittsburgh Steelers are showing the first signs of breaking the narrative that they will not pursue a high-level free agent to supplant Kenny Pickett at the quarterback position. The report indicated that there is interest in free agent QB Russell Wilson and that they will tentatively be meeting with him prior to the start of free agency. With the legal tampering period beginning on Monday, that is just days away.
The Pat McAfee Show had some instant reactions to the report, and the general consensus among the group was that Pittsburgh would be an ideal landing spot for Wilson following his release by the Denver Broncos.
“If Russell Wilson goes in and wins, oh yeah, that’s the perfect city for him,” McAfee said via a clip posted on X. “Mike Tomlin probably [the] perfect coach for him, ’cause Mike Tomlin will also talk shit for Russell Wilson.”
Wilson is coming off a rough split with the Broncos. He told the media last season that he was asked to restructure his contract and take a pay cut with the threat of being benched if he didn’t comply. Head coach Sean Payton let it be known right away when he was hired in Denver that Wilson would be expected to comply with his set of rules and there would be no special treatment for him, including his personal quarterback coach being banned from the team facility. For Wilson, who was beloved for his first 10 years in the league with the Seattle Seahawks, this was quite a change of fortunes for him.
McAfee’s assertion is that he could find a better cultural fit in the city of Pittsburgh, and specifically with Tomlin, who is regarded as a player’s coach.
“Now Russell Wilson, I wanna let you know, the city of Pittsburgh is the right city to have your back with the way you operate,” McAfee said. “If you win, they are the right city to have your back.”
The Steelers have had a tough time offensively for the last three seasons, so a quarterback who can come in and put up points would rapidly garner overwhelming support from the fan base. Pair that with the Steelers having a new offensive coordinator in Arthur Smith and plenty of weapons to support a quarterback like Wilson and McAfee could very well be right about it being the perfect fit.
This would obviously put Pickett in an odd situation entering his third NFL season. Wilson would not sign with a team that doesn’t see him as the Day 1 starter, so Pickett would be the backup and presumably have little opportunity to show anything on the field prior to his fifth-year option decision next May.
