Don’t look now, but the ‘Russell Wilson to the Steelers’ talk is back in full force.
This is a connection that first built a head of steam early in the 2022 offseason. Ben Roethlisberger had recently retired, and many wondered if Pittsburgh would make an aggressive win-now move to fill the void at quarterback.
It’s a good thing they didn’t. While Kenny Pickett hasn’t exactly been a slam-dunk pick, trading for Wilson would have required significantly more draft capital and compensation.
The trade worked out about as poorly as the Broncos could have envisioned.
Now, just two offseasons later, Denver is expected to release the former Super Bowl-winning quarterback.
Now there are rumors that the Pittsburgh Steelers could come calling about Wilson.
Andrew Fillipponi of 93.7 The Fan spoke with NFL Insider Peter King who said he would not rule out the Steelers making a play for Wilson. This certainly won’t come by means of trade.
After signing a five-year, $245 million contract with Denver in 2022, there isn’t a soul who would dream of trading for the veteran quarterback.
After a letdown performance each of the past two seasons, Wilson won’t cost a fraction as much for his new NFL team, but that doesn’t mean he should be a hot commodity when he hits the market.
The idea of bringing in a veteran quarterback with a good resume and plenty of playoff wins sounds enticing, and based on what we have seen so far, you could make the case that Wilson would be an upgrade over what they have.
But if the Steelers are to go the free agent route at quarterback, it shouldn’t be Russell Wilson.
Since he joined the Broncos in 2022, Wilson has shown a complete inability to carry his team as he earned a record of 11-19 over the past two seasons when he was at the helm.
Additionally, Wilson is coming off a career-low 6.9 yards per attempt in 2023 while taking a whopping 100 sacks over the past two seasons.
While his 2023 campaign was respectable from a statistical standpoint, some former teammates have called him out, saying that his personality may spark a mutiny in the Broncos locker room. that Wilson’s personality even rubs some the wrong way.
People have called him cringy, corny, and fake.
Whether his personality is truly an issue among teammates or not, the Steelers clearly dodged a bullet by not trading for Russell Wilson during the 2022 offseason.
Now 35 years old and with his career backsliding, Pittsburgh needs to steer clear of the veteran quarterback if and when he becomes a free agent.
