The question of who the Pittsburgh Steelers’ starting quarterback will be in 2025 is the biggest one looming over the franchise, and The Athletic’s NFL insider Dianna Russini doesn’t think it will be one of the top veterans available.
“They’re gonna look for a veteran quarterback, a bridge quarterback, and essentially continue to do what the Steelers do, which is rely on the defense, rely on the run game,” Russini said Wednesday on The Rich Eisen Show.
She said that there’s a lot of chatter about the Steelers keeping Justin Fields or Russell Wilson after Art Rooney II’s comments about preferring to keep one. While the Steelers are “trying to search under every rock” at the position, she doesn’t seem them being involved with Sam Darnold in free agency or Matthew Stafford if he becomes available via trade.
“I have a hard time believing that the Pittsburgh Steelers would be a team in on a Sam Darnold, or if the Stafford situation doesn’t work. I think it would be a smart play,” Russini said. “I don’t know if that’s necessarily the Pittsburgh way. I think the Pittsburgh Steelers are just going to go for a veteran quarterback and perhaps keep Justin Fields on this roster.”
Right now, the Steelers have Skylar Thompson under contract at quarterback for next season, and that’s it. If they do look to re-sign Fields, they would likely draft a rookie at some point to add to the room, but Russini could see them also adding another veteran. If the Steelers re-sign Fields, the veteran they add likely wouldn’t be someone who would expect to step in and start. That would rule out Aaron Rodgers and Darnold, but it could mean the Steelers could look to someone like Joe Flacco or even a reunion with Mason Rudolph to have someone with starting experience behind Fields.
It’s not the most outlandish idea, as it gives the Steelers protection in case Fields winds up struggling or gets hurt, but it certainly doesn’t seem like the Steelers will be making a play for one of the top quarterbacks on the market.
The Steelers could also opt to re-sign Russell Wilson, and in that case, the same logic could apply, but Russini has been steadfast in believing that Fields will be Pittsburgh’s choice for 2025. It’s not a huge surprise that Stafford or Darnold aren’t viable options, but the Steelers have a lot of work to do over the next few weeks to figure out what direction they want to take their quarterback room in 2025 or beyond.
