Just because a quarterback gets paid doesn't mean that he's immune to getting benched. The Atlanta Falcons are the perfect example of why this often doesn't matter, as they benched Kirk Cousins for rookie Michael Penix Jr. after handing the veteran a massive contract during the 2024 offseason. Now, a former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback could be next in line.
Recently, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport talked about New York Giants' head coach Brian Daboll and his love for rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart. Rapoport insisted that it's only a matter of time before Russell Wilson loses his starting job during the 2025 season.
"You listen to everything Brian Daboll says, you get an understanding of how far along Jaxson Dart is, and where you think he’s going to go," Rapoport said on The Insiders. "It’s clearly a matter of when, not if."
While Rapoport's focus centered around the inevitable path to a starting job for Dart, this clearly points to a Russell Wilson benching looming during the 2025 season. This is something Steelers fans hoped for late in the 2024 season with their ex-quarterback, but never got. Brian Daboll won't wait that long, and Rapoport's words suggest Wilson won't make it through the year before he's on the sideline holding a clipboard.
The Pittsburgh Steelers should have done what the New York Giants intend to do with Russell Wilson
When the Pittsburgh Steelers crumbled down the stretch of the 2025 season, fans were begging for Russell Wilson to find a seat on the bench. Over the final five games of 2024 (including the playoffs), the Steelers' offense averaged a mere 14 points per contest, and Wilson was largely to blame for his incredibly slow starts.
But instead of turning to the 25-year-old Justin Fields, Mike Tomlin kept Wilson in the lineup. This left fans void of hope for a late-season resurgence. Brian Daboll won't make the same mistake.
Unlike the Steelers' mentality in 2024, the Giants will show that they have the future of the team in mind. They know that Russell Wilson is just a 36-year-old stop-gap quarterback, and they drafted Jaxson Dart to be the future of the team. If things go south early in the year—and they certainly could with the daunting schedule New York will face—Wilson will find himself on the bench.
Pittsburgh Steelers fans hardly expected Russell Wilson to take the world by storm in 2025 after the season he had last year. Now it already looks like the New York Giants are planning to do the one thing Mike Tomlin and the Steelers refused to do last season.