Russell Wilson was all set to enter the season as the Week 1 starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers until some calf tightness – the same calf that held him out of training camp – made him a limited participant on Thursday and Friday. He was officially labeled questionable after Friday’s practice.
Ian Rapoport offered an update on the situation, including a possible timeline of when we could hear more about Wilson’s status for Sunday’s regular season opener.
“Russell Wilson is officially listed as questionable, but my understanding is the team’s gonna put him through a little workout, test him tomorrow morning and see,” Rapoport said via NFL GameDay Kickoff on NFL Network. “Just reading the tea leaves and taking stock of the situation, including the fact that Russell Wilson made it clear that he wants to be healthy for every game he possibly can in this season, does not make a lot of sense that Russell Wilson will be out there.
“Justin Fields got plenty of reps in training camp, certainly is ready and is 100 percent healthy. Certainly seems to lead us in the direction of Justin Fields being the starting quarterback for the Steelers tomorrow. No firm and final decision, but that seems to be where it is heading absent some sort of magic potion for Russell Wilson that leads him to clear this workout tomorrow morning.”
When the Steelers acquired Fields from the Chicago Bears, the trade was for a conditional 2025 sixth-round pick. If he plays 51-percent or more of the Steelers’ snaps in the regular season, that sixth-round pick turns into a fourth-round pick. Fields starting in Week 1 won’t trigger that obviously, but it increases the chances of the Steelers losing more draft capital, especially if Wilson has to miss more time.
Wilson told the media after practice on Friday that the tests on his calf were good, with no large issue other than the tightness he is currently experiencing. He said that a pre-game evaluation will be part of the final determination of his readiness. When Wilson tweaked his calf the first time, it largely held him out for about two and a half weeks, and clearly he wasn’t fully recovered. Soft-tissue injuries can be tricky, especially at 35 years old.
Fields ran with the first-team offense for the majority of training camp due to Wilson’s calf issue, and even started the preseason opener. That experience will be invaluable to him and the team if he does end up starting on Sunday.
It sounds like we will know more tomorrow after his morning workout with the team. It is possible somebody will report on that, or it could still end up being a game-time decision. If that is the case, then we likely won’t know until 90 minutes before kickoff when the inactive list is released by the Steelers.
