The Pittsburgh Steelers have both Russell Wilson and Justin Fields set to be free agents this offseason, and after a five-game losing streak to close the season, there could be change coming at the position. NFL insider Albert Breer reported on the Amazon Prime postgame show following Pittsburgh’s 28-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens that the Steelers still have yet to make a decision on what they want to do at the quarterback position.
“There’s been frustration with Russell Wilson over the course of the year. He’s in a contract year, Justin Fields is in a contract year. My understanding coming into this one was they were gonna wait until after the playoffs to make any sort of decision on what they’re gonna do with the position, see how the playoffs play out,” Breer said. “Obviously one and done does not help Russell Wilson’s case. They’d like to keep working with Justin Fields, but he’s not their starter, and there could be guys like Aaron Rodgers or Kirk Cousins available. So a lot of options open for the Steelers there.”
After a 2023 season that ended at 10-7 with a Wild Card Round loss, the Steelers signed Wilson, who won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks, to try and improve the quarterback position. The 2024 season ended at 10-7 with a Wild Card Round loss, and Wilson, who made just $1.2 million from the Steelers this season as the Broncos paid most of his salary, will now be looking for a payday.
The Steelers might not want to commit a significant amount of money to Wilson after the team’s collapse to end the season, and while turning to Fields is an option, Breer made it seem as if the Steelers wouldn’t view him as a starter. While he’s not Pittsburgh’s current starter, he did start the first six games of the season and led the Steelers to a 4-2 record. The team also used him in packages after Wilson took over in Week 7.
Both Fields and Wilson have said they want to return to Pittsburgh, but it’s highly unlikely that both come back to Pittsburgh. It’ll be interesting to see if one of them is back next year, and the Steelers will have to consider whether they want to go back into the quarterback market, especially with a group of names available that isn’t very intriguing. But the way Pittsburgh’s season ended raised serious questions about Wilson’s future as an NFL starter, and the Steelers might look to move on from him.
