Leading up to the 2024 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers knew they were in a unique situation at the most important position in all of sports. All three quarterbacks on their roster in Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Kyle Allen were on one-year deals.
Knowing that, the Steelers were hoping to find some answers at QB in 2024. It’s safe to say that they didn’t exactly find those answers. Now, entering the offseason after yet another one-and-done in the playoffs, the Steelers are back at square one under center.
For head coach Mike Tomlin, who spoke to reporters Tuesday to wrap up the season, while he is appreciative of the efforts from Wilson, Fields and Allen, and enjoyed spending the season with them and developing personal relationships, there are a lot of “major discussions to be had” at the quarterback position.
“Obviously we don’t have a quarterback under contract, and so we’ve got some major discussions there. It was a really good experience with the three guys who were on our roster this year, individually and collectively. We certainly are open to considering those guys, but there’s a lot of work ahead of us,” Tomlin said, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page. “And the major work, obviously, starts first and foremost what our options are. What the field looks like in free agency, what the draft pool looks like, and then beginning the process in terms of decision making based on known variables.
“Omar [Khan] and I have a half day carved out just to begin that component of the discussion.”
The Steelers knew entering the season that they were going to find themselves having discussions on at least Wilson and Fields after the 2024 season, due simply to each QB’s contract situation. Both were on one-year deals, and the Steelers very clearly liked both players, hence why they targeted them.
Fields started the first six games of the season due to Wilson’s nagging calf injury and played well. He showed off his legs and his improved decision-making as a passer, not turning the ball over, while becoming a dangerous weapon in the red zone. He seemed to show enough to keep the starting job.
But then Tomlin turned to Wilson in Week 7 against the New York Jets, and it was Wilson the rest of the way, including in the playoff loss to Baltimore. Wilson came out of the chute on fire, lighting it up in his first few weeks, including the second-highest output of his career from a yardage standpoint in Week 13 in Cincinnati.
But from Week 14 on, Wilson was a mess. He turned the football over and held onto the ball too long in the pocket, trying to make things happen with his legs and leading to mistakes. He just wasn’t that guy who was elevating the offense like the Steelers saw earlier in the year and were expecting.
Though he played relatively well in the loss to the Ravens to close the season, there’s uncertainty there with Wilson in the Black and Gold. Though the Super Bowl-winning QB stated Monday his goal is to return in 2025, the Steelers have to be smart about it and have difficult discussions looming about the position.
Those discussions will start once the Steelers get a good grasp on what the QB market looks like in free agency and how deep the position is in the 2025 NFL Draft, which should occur in the days and weeks ahead.
