New Pittsburgh Steelers QB Russell Wilson wasted little time taking ownership of the team. He established himself as a leader from his introductory press conference and is now the clear leader among the players. They even want to make sure that they do him a solid when the Steelers play the Denver Broncos.
After a successful 12-year career with the Seattle Seahawks, the Broncos traded for Wilson in 2022. He had two mediocre seasons there and cut bait this offseason, taking enormous financial hits in the process. In doing so, of course, they freed themselves of an even bigger hit, but the insult is what sticks. If you ask someone about the Broncos cutting Wilson, they’ll talk about the $85 million in dead money.
Steelers WR Calvin Austin III believes Wilson draws motivation from his release by the Broncos. “I think so. I definitely think so”, he said on 92.9 ESPN, and he wants to do something about it. “We play them at their house next year, so that’ll be one we have to get for Russ for sure”.
Taking on a $53 million dead money charge, the Broncos are paying Russell Wilson almost $38 million while the Steelers pay him about $1 million. The offset language of the contract allowed the Steelers to sign him for cheap, but perhaps so did the schedule.
“He was probably like, ‘I gotta play [the Broncos] next year’”, Austin said about Wilson’s motivation for signing with the Steelers. Denver benched him before the end of the season because he refused to waive injury guarantees in his deal.
Professional athletes draw motivation wherever they can, and slights are a primary source, whether real or imagined. You can bet the Steelers will embrace Russell Wilson when they play the Broncos and get that win for him.
Wilson is a borderline candidate for the Hall of Fame, and I’m sure he wants to boost his resume. His two-year stint in Denver surely hindered his case more than helped, so he needs to make the most of his time in Pittsburgh. If he beats the Broncos with the Steelers along the way, all for the better.
Players do “get up” more to play their former teams, even even-keeled guys like Tyson Alualu. Considering how poorly things ended with the Broncos, you have to bet Wilson is hungry for a Steelers win that week.
The Steelers play the Broncos early, so his revenge, if he can get it, won’t have to wait. They host the Steelers in Week 2, and Denver may be starting a rookie quarterback by then. How sweet would it be for Wilson to show Sean Payton what he’s missing by beating his hand-picked replacement?
