Will Russell Wilson make his Steelers debut in the second preseason game?
The Pittsburgh Steelers have one preseason game under their belts and two more to go. We should hear from Mike Tomlin shortly, which means we should also learn if Russell Wilson will play on Saturday. He has gradually ramped up activity since sustaining a calf injury at the start of training camp and missed the first preseason game as a result.
Even if he does play, he may not play very much. The Steelers only gave Justin Fields two drives, which is probably what Russell Wilson could expect. The reality is, though, they haven’t seen a ton from him if they really insist on him starting.
One would think the Steelers want to get a good look at Wilson at some point before the regular season. Playing against the Buffalo Bills following a joint practice would seem the ideal opportunity. Some teams tend to play their starters the most in the second preseason game since the schedule realignment.
For his part, Russell Wilson says that he is ready to go whenever the coaches allow him to go. He told reporters that he does not play with fear and won’t alter his play to avoid aggravating his injury. But he has said pretty much from the beginning that he was ready to play whenever he is allowed.
Wilson’s injury did give us a long time to get a good look at Justin Fields, who showed some intriguing talent but not enough, it seems, to persuade the Steelers to alter their plans. They haven’t said it outright, but everyone in the know still insists Wilson is the starter.
Even assuming there is an actual quarterback competition, though, Wilson would need the opportunity to compete. One would hope that he should be available to play on Saturday against the Bills just to get a sense of where things stand. If nothing else, he can use it as an opportunity to squash any doubts about who the starter is.
The Steelers’ 2024 season is approaching, following another disappointing year that culminated in a first-round playoff loss. The only change-up in the annual formula lately is whether they exit early or miss the playoffs altogether. They have had a long offseason since the Buffalo Bills stamped them out of their misery back in January.
The biggest question hanging over the team is the quarterback question. Does Russell Wilson make them a Super Bowl-caliber team, or are they wasting a year? How will the team continue to address the depth chart?
The Steelers are in training camp and the preseason and the 2024 season is coming into focus. They made numerous moves through signings and trade—and release. More than usual, they seemed comfortable creating holes, confident they can fill them. Some they managed to fill, others not so much. Now that we have so many pieces of the puzzle, however, we merely have a new set of questions to ask.
