Pittsburgh Steelers Exit Meeting: QB Russell Wilson
Experience: 13 Years (1 with Steelers)
It’s only January 20, too early for the Steelers and Russell Wilson to kickstart their exit meetings. Actually, it’s probably about how early most people thought it might start, but they deceived us. The Steelers jumped out to a 10-3 record, Wilson going 6-1 personally. But then they lost the next six games, including another embarrassing Wild Card Round loss.
And so here we are, once again talking about what’s next earlier than we would like. One of the biggest questions the Steelers face is whether Russell Wilson is part of what’s next. If you asked that in early December, it’s probably a resounding yes. Flash forward a little over a month, and it’s almost hard to imagine.
Russell Wilson is, of course, a former Super Bowl champion and potentially a Hall of Famer. Yet he found himself a street free agent after the Broncos paid him a bunch of money just to go away. The Steelers, always sensing a bargain, pounced on the opportunity, knowing Denver was paying nearly all of his salary.
Even in hindsight, I would argue it was a worthy gambit, perhaps with one caveat. The Steelers seemed intent to live or die with Russell Wilson this year, despite having minimal commitment to him. At no point did they consider benching him in favor of Justin Fields—or even using Fields more.
Tomlin isn’t afraid to rustle a few feathers in search of a “spark”, but he seemed reluctant to overshadow Wilson. He obviously viewed Wilson as a potential multi-year Steelers quarterback, but that’s less clear in late January.
In his first season with the Steelers, Russell Wilson went 214-for-336 for 2,482 yards with 16 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. He also took 33 sacks fumbled five times, however. As the season progressed, he also seemed to make poor decisions more frequently.
Factoring everything else, the Steelers must also bear in mind that Wilson is 36. That doesn’t mean he can’t play a few more years, but what will that play look like? Can he win you a Super Bowl when he is 38, and if not, why bother?
Of course, the market is going to have a lot to say about this. How will other quarterback-needy teams view Russell Wilson, assuming he hits the open market? Will anybody view him as an unquestioned starter, with a contract offer that matches that? If the Steelers have to dig into their pocket to compete, they may prefer not to. They have Justin Fields, who is more dynamic, even if a worse passer, and likely a cheaper option.
The Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves at home, the inevitable result of another early playoff exit. This is a repeated pattern for the organization, with no clear end in sight. As the Steelers conduct their own exit meetings, we will go down the roster conducting our own. Who should stay, and who should go, and how? Who should expect a bigger role next season, and who might deserve a new contract? We’ll explore those questions and more in these articles, part of an annual series.
