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The Denver Broncos cut Russell Wilson recently, bringing the former Seattle Seahawks star’s tumultuous tenure in Denver to a sudden and disappointing conclusion. With Wilson free to sign with any team and the Broncos paying $38 million of his salary, Adam Schefter broke the news that Wilson plans to sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The veteran quarterback will be a perfect fit in the Steel City, and his arrival could put the Black and Gold in an excellent position to compete for the Super Bowl LIX.
Pittsburgh is a talented team that may just be one player away from truly competing for Super Bowls. Unfortunately, the one hole on their roster is arguably the most important in all of sports, the quarterback position. Since Ben Roethlisberger's retirement, the Steelers have rotated several players under center and have struggled to find a suitable replacement.
First, they tried a third-round pick who they drafted and clumsily developed behind Roethlisberger during the tail end of his career. Next, Pittsburgh tried a reclamation product project discarded by the Bears, along with their own first-round pick who has struggled immensely early in his career.
In short, the Steelers are a perfect fit for Russell Wilson. Let's take a closer look at how this signing can propel the storied franchise to its seventh Super Bowl victory.
The Steelers need a starting quarterback
It is a legitimate question to ask whether the Steelers' starting quarterback for the 2024-2025 NFL season is currently on their roster. To put it lightly, Kenny Pickett had a nightmare season this past year. He was absolutely disastrous, struggling to move the ball downfield and playing indecisively.
It can be argued that his indecisiveness is what led to his ultimate season injury that turned out to be season-ending, as he had an opportunity to throw a touchdown to an open receiver in the corner of the end zone but didn't trust himself to make the pass. Because of his lack of confidence, he ended up trying to run the ball instead and got hurt on the play.
Physically, this was not a season-ending injury. The fact that it ended up being the end of Pickett's season speaks to just how poorly he was playing. After Mitch Trubisky came in and played mostly uninspiring football and then went out with an injury of his own, Mason Rudolph came in with both Pickett and Trubisky on the shelf.
Rudolph didn't quite dominate, but he had the team playing better football than they had all season. In fact, with Rudolph at the helm, it could be argued that the team played some of its best ball since the Ben Roethlisberger era. The team was moving the ball down the field and looking like a legitimate NFL offense.
Pittsburgh wasn't about to give up this momentum, so even when Pickett was healthy and cleared for football activities, Mike Tomlin chose to stick with Rudolph. This had to be an extremely discouraging experience for Pickett. It is almost unheard of for a team to bench a player who even has a chance of being their franchise quarterback in favor of a career journeyman.
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The Steelers may be just one player away from contending for a Super Bowl
Making the problem at the quarterback position even more pressing is the reality that Pittsburgh might be one player away from being a legitimate Super Bowl contender. The team’s miserable quarterback play is really the only thing holding them back. The defense is elite and there is plenty of talent at the skill positions to electrify crowds in the Steel City.
George Pickens is one of the most physically talented receivers in football, and he makes dazzling plays weekly. Pickens has been putting up big numbers even with the aforementioned struggles the team is having at quarterback. If Pickens is able to have this level of production with Trubisky, Pickett, and Rudolph throwing to him, the Steelers should be really excited to see what he'll be able to do with Wilson throwing him the ball.
Wilson is still a talented player
Wilson's tenure in the Mile High City has tricked many football fans. People see the numbers and the team's overall production, they see the record and they contrast this with the hype that surrounded Wilson's arrival. Wilson was supposed to put the team over the top, and instead, they have struggled to the point that they released their prized acquisition.
Sure, Wilson didn't play great. He wasn't the franchise-altering player that he was in Seattle. But, he played well enough. The Broncos were just a poorly structured team that had little hope of competing even if it was prime Peyton Manning walking through the door.
Pittsburgh doesn’t need Wilson to be a superstar. They just need him to be a slightly above-average quarterback who can competently guide an offense and get the ball to the team’s playmakers without turning it over.
Wilson should be capable of doing this at a high level, and he can also make plays with his legs. If the Steelers sign Russell Wilson, they should instantly jump into the top-10 or even top-five teams in the league.
With Wilson’s addition, Mike Tomlin’s squad should realistically be on the shortlist of legitimate Super Bowl contenders.
