Former Pittsburgh Steelers running back and Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis believes the Steelers need to find a long-term solution at quarterback. If they don’t, the Steelers are simply not going anywhere.
“I think Russell is a good quarterback for the time, but I think the problem is he’s not a long-term solution to the issue. They have got to figure out a long-term solution at the quarterback position,” Bettis said on the Dan Patrick Show. “And a lot of you hear a lot of talking heads speaking about the coach and this and that. In the NFL, we’ve seen this now. If you do not have a quarterback in the NFL, you are not going to win in the playoffs. That’s what we know for sure. And right now the Steelers have gone through this window of time where they’ve been trying to figure out the quarterback situation and they have failed.”
Russell Wilson left a lot to be desired at the end of the season. In the final four regular season games, Wilson had an 81.3 passer rating, with four touchdowns compared to two interceptions and two fumbles lost. He was also sacked 14 times over those four games. Wilson had better numbers in the playoff loss to the Ravens, but the Steelers were trailing by two scores for almost the entire contest.
All three of the team’s quarterbacks, Wilson, Justin Fields and Kyle Allen are set to become free agents in 2025.
A report by Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated this week said the team grew frustrated with Wilson down the stretch run, but would love to keep working with Fields, who started the first six games of the season while Wilson was hurt.
The bottom line is that the Steelers just don’t have a quarterback right now. You can’t compete with Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes or Joe Burrow with a 36-year-old Russell Wilson. It’s just not possible.
The NFL is loaded with elite young quarterbacks, and Justin Fields isn’t the answer either. The Steelers are in a tough spot, but they have to figure it out.
