Recently our Dave Bryan and Alex Kozora listed all of the quarterbacks in the NFL they would rank over Russell Wilson. Bryan has him at No. 20, while Kozora has him at No. 22.
CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin did a similar exercise, power ranking all of the NFL’s 32 starting quarterbacks entering the season, and had Wilson right in that same range at No. 22.
“Once the standard setter for dual threats leaguewide, Wilson is trying to salvage his legacy at 35. His leadership is a match for Mike Tomlin,” Benjamin wrote. “Can he squeeze some juice out of his arm/legs, too?”
It wasn’t that long ago that Wilson was the “standard setter,” as Benjamin put it, for dual threats. Wilson was still considered a top five to ten quarterback as recently as 2020 when he had 4,212 passing yards and 40 touchdown passes. His 2021 campaign was derailed by a mallet-finger injury, and then his struggles over the last two seasons with the Denver Broncos have been well documented.
He didn’t have the most volume last season with just 3,070 passing yards, but he did manage to greatly improve his touchdown to interception ratio from the year prior. The Steelers would have killed for a 26:8 ratio from their starting quarterbacks last year.
Wilson will also be playing for a team that is much more familiar to him from his days with the Seahawks. He will have a strong defense that helps keep scores low and puts the ball in his hands as much as possible. A rushing attack powered by the one-two punch of Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren should be dominant like his days working with Marshawn Lynch. The other offensive weapons are lacking, but Wilson at least has one dynamic target in WR George Pickens and a safety blanket in TE Pat Freiermuth.
Arthur Smith’s offensive system should feel much more natural to Wilson than what he was working with under Sean Payton. A lot of running the ball and setting up play-action. He should have some opportunities to let the ball fly downfield, which has always been one of his greatest strengths as a passer.
For comparison, the same CBS Sports ranking last year had Wilson at No. 21 after his disastrous first season in Denver. And Kenny Pickett was at No. 23 with the arrow pointing up following an impressive preseason.
Wilson’s No. 22 ranking places him one spot above Deshaun Watson, but well below the other AFC North quarterbacks. Lamar Jackson is No. 3 and Joe Burrow is No. 4.
