The Pittsburgh Steelers had a great start to the year, despite being without QB Russell Wilson for the first six games. Wilson came back before Week 7, and started off well with impressive wins against to start his career as a Steeler. Wilson was able to knock off the New York Jets, New York Giants and Washington Commanders in solid performances across the board.
However, while he’s still 4-1 as a Steeler, his last two performances haven’t been quite as impressive. Chris Boswell helped the Steelers to all 18 of their points in their win against the Baltimore Ravens. Against the Cleveland Browns, Wilson did start to put things together in the fourth quarter, but for much of the game, the offense was ineffective. While Wilson got off to a nice start, there are still some things the offense needs to iron out.
Former NFL quarterback Cam Newton isn’t giving Wilson the benefit of the doubt. On an episode of ‘4th&1 With Cam Newton‘ recorded before the Browns game, Newton didn’t think Wilson was as impactful as others made him out to be.
“I feel like Russell Wilson is being carried by the Pittsburgh Steelers,” Newton said. “Russ is cooking. Is he making some big time throws? Yes. But I’m looking at his situation and I’m saying, he’s not doing anything different. What alarms me was this statistic that is like ‘oh man, Russell Wilson is undefeated, the Steelers are 4-0′. I’m like, who have they played?”
While we don’t know Newton’s post-Browns game thoughts, considering it was Wilson’s first loss against a 2-8 team, they’re unlikely to have changed. It’s fair to say wins over the dumpster fires that are the New York Jets and Giants don’t move the needle much but he helped beat playoff teams the Washington Commanders and Baltimore Ravens. Still, Newton thinks it doesn’t tell the full story.
“By the way, Chris Boswell kicked all the points,” Newton said. “And he had an egregious interception.”
Newton doesn’t exactly seem to call Wilson out for actual poor play. He makes the point that Wilson’s got a bit more to prove. After the Steelers’ loss to Cleveland, he likely won’t feel any different. However, Wilson did start to turn things on late in the fourth quarter. He connected with Calvin Austin on a late touchdown pass. If the Steelers don’t give up another score to the Browns late in that game, the outlook regarding Wilson might be very different.
After back-to-back tough performances against AFC North opponents, the Steelers will need to look more competent on offense throughout the rest of the season. They don’t escape an AFC North either, facing a potent Cincinnati Bengals’ team next Sunday.
