The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a dramatic overhaul in their quarterback room over the last few weeks,
They let Mason Rudolph leave — and then the news broke they inked a deal with 7-time Pro Bowl QB Russell Wilson on a cheap one-year deal as the Broncos still have to pay their former signal caller $38 million this year.
From the minute the Wilson deal was locked in, it was assumed he would be the starting QB for 2024.
But officially, the team announced he would compete with Kenny Pickett in the offseason and training camp for the Steelers 2024 staring QB job.
“I come in with the mindset of just being the best version of me every day. I think that’s always the plan,” Russell Wilson told Pittsburgh media. “For me, I want to help our football team win. I think that’s the quarterback’s role is to help the Pittsburgh Steelers win.”
The Steelers used a 2022 first-round pick on Kenny Pickett, but the signal-caller struggled to move the offense and was eventually usurped by Mason Rudolph last season. In steps Wilson, a former Super Bowl champion following two down seasons in Denver.
Wilson repeatedly parried questions about whether he was given any assurances he would be the starter.
“Every day you wake up, you look forward to helping the team win,” he said. “I think that’s just honestly my focus right now. I’ve been fortunate to be in this league for a long time and had a lot of success and done some cool things, but there’s more to do. And that’s where my head’s at.”
With the Broncos owing Russell Wilson $38 million following his release, the Steelers were able to sign the QB to the veteran minimum of $1.21 million. As a practical matter, Wilson is essentially playing in Pittsburgh this season for free. He chose the Steelers for a chance to get back to winning.
And on Friday, it became one-hundred percent clear he would be the starter for 2024 when the stunning news broke that the Steelers traded Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Wilson said Pittsburgh felt like the perfect fit despite interest from every other team and plans to help the organization win another Super Bowl. He clearly knew all along he would be the starter and now it’s official.
“I was fortunate to have several teams call, and all that, but this is the place that I wanted to be,” he said. “Being a Steeler and to wear the black and gold, it’s a true honor. It’s tradition. It’s history. There’s six trophies in there and we’ve got to go get a seventh.”
Wilson said he has designs on playing “five to seven” more years. If that’s the case, his play must dramatically improve compared to what we saw in Denver.
Pittsburgh Steelers QB Russell Wilson Revealed What He Told Kenny Pickett Before QB Was Traded To Philadelphia Eagles
Gerry Dulac, who covers the Steelers on a regular basis, shared the reasoning for the organization moving on from PIckett.
“The Steelers made the move because of the way Pickett was poorly handling the arrival of Russell Wilson, according to sources. That came on the heels of Pickett’s behavior last season when he refused to dress as the emergency third quarterback in Seattle in Week 17.”
Now, the Steelers only have one QB under contract and while it’s inevitable they sign a backup in free agency or acquire one through the NFL Draft, Wilson won’t be competing with Kenny Pickett for the starting job.
In a recent article on NFL.com, Wilson shared the conversation he had with Pickett when he was signed in Pittsburgh.
“As soon as I made the decision to come here, I texted Kenny and got to talk to him a little bit and told him, ‘Hey, every day we go out there, let’s be the best version of ourselves and try to make this team better,'” Wilson said. “So that was cool. I just texted him right away.
For me, the thing about being a quarterback in this National Football League, there’s 32 teams, there’s 32 quarterbacks that get to start, but there’s all these guys that get to do all the work together and on the journey. It’s a quarterback club. The best part about it is I’ve been fortunate to be a part of it for my 13th year. I want to continue that as long as I possibly can.”
It’s clear Kenny Pickett wasn’t receptive to Wilson’s text which led to the Pittsburgh Steelers parting ways with the QB that was once viewed as the future franchise starter.
