Once drafted by the Colorado Rockies and playing for the New York Yankees, Russell Wilson likened his Sunday Pittsburgh Steelers debut to a baseball game. Get in the box early, take a couple of cuts, a few at-bats to find his swing. After a rough first 20 minutes that allowed doubt to creep in about Mike Tomlin’s quarterback switch, Wilson told coaches to be patient.
“I started off 0-for-2. But felt like I was gonna get hot,” Wilson told reporters via the team’s YouTube channel following the Steelers’ 37-15 win over the New York Jets Sunday night. “I kept telling coach, ‘Hey, I’m gonna get hot here.’ And sure enough, we did. We did a great job. The guys did a tremendous job up front.”
After completing his first pass for 15 yards, Wilson and the offense fell into a slump. Three straight three-and-outs with Wilson completing just one of his next seven passes. He was either pressured, had his pass dropped, missed badly, or some combination of the three. The boobirds came out and even Mike Tomlin’s face seemed unsure of how the rest of the game was going to go.
But Wilson and the offense heated up after CB Beanie Bishop Jr.’s late-first half interception. He found WR George Pickens for his first touchdown pass as a Steeler and kept things rolling after halftime. In the second half, Wilson was an excellent 8-of-12 with a touchdown pass, throwing downfield and letting his receivers make plays while hitting open receivers like WR Calvin Austin III for good gains. Play-action was a consistent and key tool throughout the final three quarters.
By game’s end, he had authored one of the most productive outings of a Steelers quarterback in the post-Ben Roethlisberger era. 264 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions, and 37 points on the scoreboard. Wilson’s forever-positive attitude might grate on some but it was key to handling an objectively poor, if expected, start as he shook off the rust. He’ll look to pick up where he left off Monday night against the New York Giants.
