Not that it was ever going to happen in the first place with the Pittsburgh Steelers’ long-standing policy of not negotiating contracts during the season, but there is another major reason why it certainly won’t happen. Even if they wanted to break their policy, it would have big implications on his guarantees and offset with the Denver Broncos, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
Wilson signed a one-year, $1.21 million contract with the Steelers in free agency. He wasn’t just giving them a bargain, he was able to sign for no money because the Broncos picked up the rest of his 2024 tab with the massive guarantees they gave him in his 2022 extension. They are able to offset the Steelers’ $1.21 million, but they are still paying him $37.79 million this year to not play for them.
According to Florio, an in-season extension would complicate those Denver offsets and create some unintended consequences.
“The Steelers won’t have to deviate from their policy, even if they were tempted to do so. An extension as a practical matter can’t happen,” Florio wrote. “Per a source with knowledge of the situation, a new deal done during the 2024 season would complicate significantly the offset applicable to Wilson’s guaranteed pay from Denver this year. If Wilson did a deal during the season, some of that money would reduce what the Broncos owe him.”
Florio didn’t outline exactly what that would mean for the Steelers’ situation, but his source clearly thinks it would make it a non-starter for the Steelers. Again, they were not going to do this anyways with their policy, but there is another reason they definitely won’t.
Yes, the price for Wilson has the potential to keep going up if he keeps winning and looking good. He is 4-1 as the starter for the Steelers, and looks way better than his two-year disaster with the Broncos. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reported yesterday that the Steelers and Wilson are expected to reach an extension in the offseason, which echoes what Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac has been saying since shortly after Wilson signed last March.
There is still plenty of season to go, and hopefully a look at him in the playoffs as well. I doubt that anybody’s minds are fully made up yet without a complete set of data, though I certainly believe they are leaning towards keeping him beyond 2024. He has said multiple times that he wishes to play into his 40s, which is at least five more seasons.
