The Pittsburgh Steelers’ season ended last weekend when they lost to the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs.
After another quick playoff exit, the team has some big decisions to make this offseason. Most importantly, it must decide what to do at the quarterback position.
Veteran Russell Wilson started 11 games for the team while former Chicago Bear Justin Fields started six. Wilson ended the season as the starter but his play over the final stretch of the season didn’t inspire much confidence.
The Steelers lost the final four games of the regular season before being knocked out in their first playoff game. Over that stretch, Wilson averaged just 193.6 passing yards per game while throwing for seven touchdowns and two interceptions.
Wilson signed a one-year deal with the Steelers last offseason, so the veteran will enter free agency again this offseason. However, for Steelers fans who wish to move on from the veteran, NFL Network's Mike Garofolo has some bad news.
Garafolo says that Wilson still has the support of head coach Mike Tomlin. The NFL insider offered the following:
“Russell Wilson’s best path back to the Steelers’ roster in 2025 is through Mike Tomlin, who was certainly his biggest supporter from the time that he realized we can get this guy for a veteran minimum deal, bring him on the roster, and potentially compete and have a starting quarterback for that number while the Broncos pick up the tab," Garafolo said. "He still has a lot of support from Tomlin; Wilson does, from what I understand. Even recently, despite the fact that he didn’t play as well as he did earlier in the season.”
Tomlin recently made it clear that he still intends to coach the Steelers in 2025, which is good news for Wilson's chances of sticking in Pittsburgh.
Fields is also headed for free agency, but the expectation is he'll leave in search of a place that gives him a chance to start.
If the Steelers do keep Wilson, he's going to be making a lot more than he did in 2024. But, per Over the Cap, the Steelers are currently projected to have around $52 million in cap space, so they have the funds to afford him.
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