If the Pittsburgh Steelers go outside the organization for a quarterback this year, 2025 will be the third straight season the Steelers have someone new start at quarterback for them. The team overhauled the room last offseason, acquiring Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, but both are set to be free agents in March. Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette thinks that the Steelers prefer to have continuity at the position instead of looking for another outside veteran.
“I will say this. If those other two options fall through, then you’re probably gonna have to go after a guy like Daniel Jones. He’s mobile, he’s got a little bit of experience. It’d be a bridge quarterback, that would be your next option, but I don’t think they want to go down that route just now. We talked about continuity for Justin Fields, I think the Steelers want some continuity too, going forward,” Fittipaldo said on The Fan Morning Show on 93.7 The Fan.
It wouldn’t be ideal going with an outside veteran, and it especially wouldn’t be ideal if that player was Daniel Jones. But that’s not what the Steelers want to do, and the thought that Pittsburgh would prefer continuity at quarterback tracks with Art Rooney II saying the team would prefer to bring back Fields or Wilson. Unless the Steelers can somehow get a clear upgrade at quarterback, it makes sense to run it back at the position. That way, Arthur Smith doesn’t need to teach his offense to someone for the second offseason in a row, and the continuity at quarterback would ideally lead to growth in the system.
Justin Fields also could benefit from continuity if he’s the choice, as he played for three different offensive coordinators in his career now, and leaving the Steelers would make it four. Having that continuity could help him grow into the player he was expected to be when the Bears took him in the first round in 2021 or at least help him prove that he can be a starter in the league, instead of needing to reset with another new offense.
Even for Wilson, it would be his third team in three years if he left the Steelers, although I’m less optimistic about his ability to grow within the system given his struggles to end 2024 and the fact that he isn’t getting any younger.
But it’s understandable that the Steelers aren’t eyeing any big changes in a weak quarterback market. If Daniel Jones or someone similar is going to be the team’s next-best option behind Fields and Wilson, that tells you a lot about the available quarterback talent, and retaining Fields or Wilson makes a lot more sense than going outside the organization in such a weak class.
