NOVEMBER 24: Adding further on the point of a new Wilson deal only coming after the campaign is over, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports an agreement being worked out midseason would “complicate” the offsets present in Wilson’s 2024 compensation. The Broncos are on the hook for most of his earnings this season owing to the guarantees remaining on his Denver pact at the time he was released. With that in mind, Wilson’s market will indeed be determined entirely by his performance over the coming weeks.
NOVEMBER 21: Russell Wilson will turn 36 next week, and while the decorated quarterback has not been on the league’s top tier at the position for a bit, he has found some traction in Pittsburgh. The 13th-year veteran has established himself as the Steelers’ starter, and the team is not deviating from an aim it expressed upon acquiring him.
The Steelers had gone to notable lengths to assure Wilson he was the priority this offseason, with rumors about a second contract — despite the two-year Broncos starter having just signed his first with the team — coming out immediately after the Justin Fields trade commenced. Fields and Wilson remain free agents-to-be, and with the Steelers not changing their policy of not negotiating in-season to account for this unique situation, the team has some decisions to make early in the 2025 offseason.
Although Fields caught up with Wilson during training camp — to force a late-August Mike Tomlin call — and started the first six games due to the veteran’s nagging calf injury, Wilson has stayed healthy since the September setback. The former Super Bowl winner has not done anything to prompt the Steelers to change plans, with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac indicating the club intends to re-sign its current starter.
With the Steelers not changing their in-season negotiating policy — in place for 30-plus years — they have a narrow window to complete a second Wilson contract. How far Pittsburgh advances in the playoffs will shape that window, as 2025 UFAs will be free to speak with other teams beginning March 10. The franchise tag window opens Feb. 18, but like Baker Mayfield this past offseason, Wilson does not seem a true candidate to clog a team’s cap with a QB tag number (2024’s was $38.3MM) just so the Steelers can keep negotiating without outside interference. The March 10 deadline will apply here.
The Bucs re-signed Mayfield a day before this year’s legal tampering period, agreeing to a three-year deal worth $100MM. Mayfield being six years younger than Wilson complicates the latter’s path, though midlevel QB1 deals like Mayfield’s and those given to Derek Carr, Geno Smith and Daniel Jones could certainly be relevant. Smith’s three-year, $75MM Seahawks deal became team-friendly quickly, as he is the only quarterback with an AAV between $12.5MM and $33.3MM.
Wilson’s age makes that territory the Steelers will likely try to explore, though the potential Hall of Famer has a past as a shrewd negotiator. While Wilson’s fiercest negotiations came in Seattle, his Denver deal (five years, $245MM) has introduced a historically high hurdle for the Broncos to clear due to the record-setting dead money stretching to 2026. Wilson is tied to a veteran-minimum contract, as he had guaranteed money coming his way from Denver, with Pittsburgh.
Only making four starts with his new team before Thursday night’s game, Wilson has directed the Steelers to a 4-0 record. Starting off better than he did with the Broncos, Wilson has averaged 7.8 yards per attempt (60.3% completion rate) and thrown six touchdown passes compared to two interceptions. This is still a small sample size, but Pro-Football-Reference would rank Wilson 33rd in QBR (43.0) were he to have enough snaps to qualify. This is south of his 2023 Denver mark (50.7). The Steelers not negotiating in-season will allow for more data to emerge, as this probably will not be a simple negotiation assuming Wilson proves enough to be viewed as a 2025 starter.
The Steelers have not enjoyed quality QB play since before Ben Roethlisberger‘s 2019 elbow injury, with the Kenny Pickett plan backfiring quickly. How Wilson fares down the stretch will be a key NFL subplot, as Fields drifting to the backup level moves the 2021 draftee closer to free agency. Wilson and the Steelers’ price points will be fascinating, as the sides’ quest to find middle ground on a medium-term deal will be one of the 2025 offseason’s top storylines.
Signing either of Russ or Fields again to a 2-3 year deal isn’t a bad idea for the Steelers this offseason since they have a team that can compete for the division and maybe make a playoff run. But plan A should be to draft a guy either this year or next to be the long term solution.
Gonna be hard to do if they are picking, say, 28th
The Steelers can compete for the division if the Browns and Bengals continue to have 6 combined wins heading into late November but is that likely to be the case for the next 2-3 years?
Are we talking 2-3 years from now or the sales pitch to Russ to return for NEXT year?
Of course I agree he likely wont be the best option in 2-3 years. They will almost certainly need to sign him that long if they want him to return. Which this article indicates they do.
Tomlin’s pitch will NOT be, “hey man, you want to come keep the seat warm while we search for a long term replacement for ya?”
It’ll be “great Year 1, lets build off that and go win a SB next year. He’s a 3 year deal to make the numbers work”
Pickett didn’t workout for the Steelers but finding a young QB who can have the impact of Stroud or Love is certainly at the top of their priority list. I would bet heavily against Wilson avoiding injuries for another 2-3 years.
Wilson is a great combination with Fields who can carry the “leg work” while he develops his tendencies under Wilson.
Browns will continue to be the Browns, so yeah, the Steelers will continue to compete.
And yet the Browns were the last of the 2 to win a playoff game. Teams have been pretty evenly matched in recent years and that’s what really matters. Nobody cares about history
Said by a fan whose team doesn’t have history.
Nope. My teams have history but winning Championships in the 70’s and one in 90’s means nothing to me and 99% of the fans now. Pittsburgh can be so proud of the Pirates from 1979. That’s probably why they draw huge crowds now
The Steelers have a winning tradition and Mike Tomlin has never had a losing season. Contrast with the National Sports Media’s favorite team which resides in Foxboro.
I thinks it’s obvious to everyone that the Steelers long term plan doesn’t include either Wilson or Fields. Would Wilson be interested in returning as a backup to mentor a young prospect? That’s probably the role he would be asked to take on by Tomlin.
Where are you seeing this younger prospect? They are AT WORST picking outside the Top 20. No rookie taken after that would be a lock to usurp either vet in 2025.
Look at Atlanta. They took a Top 10 guy and plan to sit him multiple years until their vet breaks down.
Barring a trade into the Top 5, Tomlin would simply tell Russ the job is his as long as he keeps earning it.
I was quite skeptical Wilson could regain his form after multiple down years, but…he’s been very good.
Most importantly, his legs have been good. Way better than expected. This isn’t Flacco out there using veteran moxie to paper over a broken down body. He’s looked reasonably close to his Seattle peak.
Assuming the price is right, no reason to not resign him for 2, maybe 3 years.
He’s been good. Not very good. He takes awful sacks at the worst times and minus the overhyped “moon balls” he’s not worth a major investment at this age. He’s slightly below average with his legs too which isn’t saying much in today’s league. Still would rather him than Fields but we’re gonna be stuck in this quagmire of iffy QB play and first round exits/last team out until we get a QB (and an offense) capable of going toe to toe with the top half of em
Too early to tell, the team has done well but alot of football left to play. Russ doesnt seem to run as well but he could be favoring the legs till playoff time.
At this point in time it makes sense. He’s done well and seems to be comfortable in his role. Fields will be the one to walk.
Is someone offering Fields a starting job next year?
If not, where is he getting a better backup job than PGH?
I think both return (assuming Wilson’s deal isn’t so pricey it doesn’t leave room for anything but a Dollar Tree backup QB).
From the sound of it critics aren’t too excited about the 2025 NFL Draft list for QBs. I’m not super hot on Russell Wilson for much more than a decent 2-year deal, but that would give them time to land on somebody for the future. Wilson is playing a hell of a lot better than Rodgers, but we haven’t hit the playoffs yet and neither has he for some time now.
How about them Browns!
I’m sure Wilson is gonna be pretty sore in the morning from all the hits he took tonight.
You have to feel good for the Tomlin Bashers.
Poor guys, they had to hide under their rocks for almost 6 full weeks while a terrible coach got lucky for the 18th straight year and somehow had a team with two new QB’s, an injured and young O line, a bad WR room, etc. sitting at 8-2.
This morning, they got to crawl out from under their rocks to yell “see, he’s only 8-3 now!!! That BUM!!!”
He’s not a bum, but to ignore the lack of playoff production in nearly a decade would be shortsighted I think.
He’s a better Mike McCarthy in my view. Early success, got comfortable and then rides based on past playoff success. Where they differ is that if Mike Tomlin went elsewhere he would fair far better than McCarthy has thus far with Dallas.
Tomlin is a good coach, that much is true. However, he does seem to be one of those coaches that, when it comes down to it, can’t finish the deal in big game. Give the man credit for willing substandard teams to strong regular seasons (in this team being 8-3 somehow), but that’s the max extent of his might.
OK, but…when you “will… substandard teams to strong regular seasons” it stands to reason those teams won’t have much postseason success, right?
If people don’t like his results, so be it, I guess…but the idea that it’s because he’s a bad coach who JUST HAPPENS to win every year is just dumb.
He’s too good a coach (with some obvious flaw like challenges, etc.) whose teams overachieve only to be exposed by superior teams when the stakes raise and in doing so deprives the team of the high picks they need to get back to the truly elite level.
He’s had ONE top ten pick in his entire tenure. Almost 20 year tenure. That ONE top ten pick was when they traded up to #10 for…Devin Bush. Who did almost nothing for them.
The one time he had an “elite” core (3 B’s), it was 3 of the dumbest guys in the league and they’d choke under pressure.
Coaching has limits.
The NFL hasn’t actually grasped the concept that coaching has limits. The teams around the league think “Hey, we only have 15 assistant coaches on each side of the ball…we better hire additional staff”.
They intend, which just means they will decide after this season. The are not committing to Wilson until they are sure he is the right guy. My guess is anything less then one playoff win and Rus is done after this year.
Regardless of what they do with Rus they need to draft a QB in the late 2nd round and let him sit for a year or two. (Sit behind who?) We will wait to see if it is Rus or not.