When the Denver Broncos cut Russell Wilson loose, the Pittsburgh Steelers pounced on the opportunity. Coming from a quarterback room consisting of Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, and Mitch Trubisky, one can understand the appeal. As we near the end of his first full season with the Steelers, though, what do we make of it? Do we want more—more important do the Steelers, and at what price?
Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette sees a cautionary tale in this offseason’s quarterback moves with veteran arms. Russell Wilson wasn’t the only big name to change uniforms, even going back to 2023. There is certainly buyer’s remorse, with the Atlanta Falcons having already benched Kirk Cousins. It’s hard to see a future for Aaron Rodgers in New York—and possibly anywhere in 2025. And we could go deeper, certainly.
“I think when the Steelers come to that table this offseason, if they want to, maybe you go to him, and not use it as a bargaining chip, per se, but an argument”, Batko said Sunday night on the #1 Cochran Sports Showdown about how he views the team’s upcoming contract talks with Russell Wilson. “Like, ‘Russ, do you see what happened to these organizations that invested in these older quarterbacks? We believe in you but look at Rodgers and the Jets. Look at Cousins and the Falcons. We’ve got to have a little bit of trepidation going in here, so meet us in the middle’”.
We can even talk about names like Joe Flacco and Andy Dalton, Cooper Rush and Jameis Winston. These are all older quarterbacks in their 30s who at some point started this season, for various reasons. Flacco had a charmed late run with the Browns last year but still couldn’t find a full-time starting gig. Russell Wilson was still a starter in Denver, so it’s not a seamless comparison. But the point is, there is a shelf life on quarterbacks. Even for the elite, and the expiration date can hit suddenly.
The panel also discussed Wilson’s recent performance, amidst a three-game losing streak. He has accounted for a string of significant turnovers, including multiple in the red zone. While he certainly hasn’t been the Steelers’ biggest problem during this run, he hasn’t made much of a difference, either.
The Steelers were always going to have their hands full with this string of games. But they brought in Russell Wilson to make them competitive against any team, and they were not that. Some of that was due to bad luck, and bad timing with injuries and uncharacteristic issues. All of this is to say that the Steelers aren’t exactly promised a Lombardi under the current arrangement. And that factors into the talk about money that is to come.
“If he’s willing to do [meet the Steelers in the middle], depending on how these last two [to five] games go, maybe they do work something out”, Batko said of Wilson. “But I wouldn’t break the bank for him”. And unless he goes on an impressive postseason run, it’s hard to argue with that right now.
