Nick Wright isn’t exactly known for being a positive man. Prior to the season, he found a way to trash just about everything he could about the Pittsburgh Steelers. Unsurprisingly, he was one of the many saying the Steelers would finish last in the AFC North. And then there’s the matter of QB Russell Wilson.
Prior to the season, Wright invoked the name of New York Giants QB Daniel Jones when talking about Wilson. He thought that there was no chance Wilson had anything left in the tank. Otherwise, Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton would have made it happen.
But now? Wright’s tune has changed.
“That moonball’s back, he’s not taking as many sacks…” said Wright on Tuesday’s episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd. “I thought Russell Wilson was totally cooked. And he’s now playing, I think, better than he played obviously in Denver, either year, but I think arguably better than he played his final year in Seattle. And that is shocking to me.”
In the three games Wilson started in Pittsburgh, he has thrown for 737 yards and six touchdowns with one interception. He also ran in a touchdown. However, he’s only completing 58.8 percent of his passes, but he’s making big plays. The Steelers are 3-0 with him starting.
In 2023, Wilson did have a better completion percentage at 66.4 percent with the Broncos. And in his last season with the Seahawks in 2021, he completed 64.8 percent of his passes. But Wilson is throwing touchdowns at a higher rate this year (7.1 percent). That’s actually the third-highest touchdown percentage of his career. And he’s also averaging 8.7 yards per passing attempt, a career-high.
So are there stats where Wilson maybe isn’t as good as he’s been previously? Absolutely. He only completed 50 percent of his passes against the Washington Commanders on Sunday. But right now, he’s in complete command of the Steelers’ offense. He’s gaining more yards with each pass attempt than he ever has. He’s throwing for touchdowns more often than he has in a while.
So Wright is right. Russell Wilson is playing quite well. Which is forcing Nick Wright to admit he was wrong in the first place.
