Still searching for their successor to Ben Roethlisberger, the Pittsburgh Steelers are turning to Russell Wilson. Head coach Mike Tomlin named him their starter last week, and they are now preparing for the Atlanta Falcons. Justin Fields will dress as his backup, and maybe play a few snaps, but this is Wilson’s offense.
Just as Roethlisberger believes was the plan the entire time. “I think it was always Russ’ job”, he said on his Footbahlin podcast. And I should note that while they posted the episode Monday night, they clearly recorded it prior to the announcement. “I know that Coach [Mike Tomlin] talked about a competition and this and that and the other. It was probably like, ‘Alright Russ, there’s a 75 percent chance you’re getting the job’”.
My favorite part of the announcement was watching all the beat writers who gradually started to believe Justin Fields had a chance at the job suddenly turn around and say they knew it all along. Granted, Russell Wilson’s calf injury threw a wrench into things and made it interesting for a moment. And some reporters, who seemingly won’t admit to it now, started buying into it. But I digress.
The Steelers signed Russell Wilson this offseason as a street free agent. Roethlisberger thanked the Broncos for releasing him and eating an immense cap hit, allowing the Steelers to sign him. A Super Bowl champion, he has a tarnished reputation in recent years. It wasn’t so long ago, though, that he was considered one of the best in the NFL.
Perhaps the Steelers and Mike Tomlin believe they can revive some of that in Wilson. But they also seem to believe they can nurture a starter out of Justin Fields in time—even if that time is not now. But how close might we have come to Fields seeing the field as the starter sooner rather than later?
“Even if Justin plays really well, like, okay, that 75, it could’ve kind of gotten back to level playing ground. but I think it was always gonna be [Wilson’s job]”, Roethlisberger said. “[Tomlin] wanted a veteran guy in there”.
Well, the Steelers certainly have a veteran now in Russell Wilson, who has been a captain for three teams now. Cameron Heyward said that the Steelers needed his kind of leadership on offense, implying they were missing it before.
Leadership doesn’t put points on the board, however, and Roethlisberger knows that’s how everyone will evaluate Russell Wilson. Will he help the Steelers win games, reach the postseason, and make a run? That is all anybody cares about at this stage of the game.
As far as the competition goes, the reality is Justin Fields didn’t blow the roof off the competition. Just like Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett didn’t in 2022, nobody “won” the job. And Russell Wilson didn’t lose it, so he is the starter. But like everything else in life, that is preliminary and contingent upon him doing what is expected of him.
