The Pittsburgh Steelers have completely revamped their quarterback room this offseason, signing Russell Wilson and then trading for Justin Fields. While Wilson is the favorite to be the starter, offensive coordinator Arthur Smith is not ready to hand the job to him just yet.
“Russ is in the pole position,” Smith said, via Brooke Pryor of ESPN. “It's a competition. Obviously, we get to Latrobe, I'm sure things will heat up, but both those guys knew that, however they were acquired, and they got here and I think it's been pretty transparent.”
Wilson is coming off of a very disappointing two-year stint with the Denver Broncos, resulting in his release. He actually played fairly well in 2023, throwing for 3,070 yards, 26 touchdowns and eight interceptions while completing 66.4 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 98 in 15 starts. That being said, some will tell you that the stats don't tell the full story and that Wilson really wasn't all that good this past season.
He was certainly better than he was during his debut campaign in Denver, however, as he totaled 16 passing touchdowns and 11 picks in 2022.
Obviously, the Steelers are hoping Wilson can rediscover his form that made him a nine-time Pro Bowler with the Seattle Seahawks.
Russell Wilson is almost guaranteed to start Week 1 for Steelers
Let's be honest: barring an injury or dramatic unforeseen circumstances in camp or preseason, Wilson will be under center for Pittsburgh in Week 1.
Now, that does not necessarily mean that Wilson is guaranteed to remain the Steelers' starting quarterback for the entire 2024 campaign.
Again, Wilson's reputation has taken a big hit over the last couple of years. He is no longer regarded as an elite signal-caller, and there are some who speak very highly of Fields' potential. If Wilson struggles early on, Fields could very well supplant him at the starter midseason.
Pittsburgh only signed Wilson for one year, so the club has no obligation to him beyond 2024. Meanwhile, Fields is just 25 years old, so it stands to reason that the Steelers could view him as their potential quarterback of the future.
Of course, it's not like Fields has proven a whole lot, either.
The Ohio State product spent the first three years of his career with the Chicago Bears, but went just 10-28 as a starter. He enjoyed the best season of his career in 2023, throwing for 2,562 yards, 16 touchdowns and nine picks while completing 61.4 percent of his throws and registering an 86.3 passer rating. He added 657 yards and four scores as a rusher.
Fields did all of that in 13 starts, as he missed four games due to a dislocated thumb.
But those are obviously not overly impressive numbers, so it's entirely possible that the Steelers will end up with a completely different quarterback under center in 2025.
For now, though, this is Wilson's job to lose. So long as he has an adequate training camp, he should be fine heading into the season opener. We'll see if he can rebuild some of his rep as we move forward.
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