The Pittsburgh Steelers had everything going well for them at one point during the 2024 season. The team had a record of 10-3 with a chance to win the AFC North and maybe even claim the one seed in the AFC. However, the most important aspect of the impressive season was that the team was getting pretty impressive quarterback play from Russell Wilson. Wilson is near the end of his career, but he could have been the signal-caller for the next couple of seasons for the Steelers had his play not fallen off to end the season.
Saying the end of the 2024 season in Pittsburgh was a disaster is an understatement. The team lost its final four regular season games before getting embarrassed once again in the postseason. Wilson did not play well over that stretch, which is partially why the organization put most of its efforts into re-signing Justin Fields over Wilson. The veteran was limited over that final stretch of games as he had some bad turnovers and consistently hung onto the ball for too long.
Team insider Mike DeFabo recently appeared on The Bettor Angle, and he discussed the Steelers' true intentions with Wilson heading into the 2025 offseason.
"Publicly, they framed this as a Justin versus Russ decision, but it's pretty clear that they were really just using Russell Wilson as a backup plan and as leverage." DeFabo said.
The Steelers came out after the 2024 season ended and announced that the organization would like to have either Wilson or Fields return as the starter for the 2025 season. The team preferred Fields, but failed to re-sign the quarterback before he hit the open market and signed with the New York Jets. The organization only stated they were still interested in Wilson to try and get Fields to ink a new deal.
Wilson has been nothing more than a backup option in Pittsburgh, and that has been clear due to the amount of other options the franchise has explored. The organization showed interest in Matthew Stafford, offered a deal to Sam Darnold, and is the leader in the club house to land Aaron Rodgers. DeFabo spoke about how far down the list of options Wilson truly is.
"He can't be too happy about the way that things have gone, where initially he had to feel going into this situation that it was either him or Justin." DeFabo said. "Now you're going, if you're Russell Wilson, 'Wait a minute, you didn't get Justin, then you explored Sam Darnold, you thought about Matt Stafford and maybe offered him a contract, now you’re talking to Aaron Rodgers. How far down the list do I fall?'"
The veteran quarterback would probably want to play elsewhere after how the 2025 offseason has gone. Including Fields, the franchise has explored four other options outside of Wilson. He now knows he is nowhere near the quarterback the organization wants, which points to him wearing a new uniform in 2025.
Steelers Will Have A Lot To Do With Where Russell Wilson Plays In 2025
Both Wilson and Rodgers are in play for the New York Giants, but Wilson probably won't be able to find a new home until Rodgers signs somewhere. Rodgers is the first option in both Pittsburgh and New York, and if the Steelers sign Rodgers it is highly likely that Wilson becomes a Giant. The Steelers are still waiting on a decision from the veteran, but him spending six hours in the team's facility on Friday points in the direction of him ending up in Pittsburgh, and Wilson going to New York.
