We have to keep reminding ourselves that it's only OTAs. What we see now isn't what fans are necessarily going to get during the regular season. So when the latest Russell Wilson video clip dropped, naturally, fans would overreact. The Pittsburgh Steelers' dismal quarterback situation has some folks even missing the recently departed Wilson.
On Thursday, the New York Giants quarterback was caught on video delivering a strike over the middle of the field to wide receiver Jalin Hyatt. Hyatt, a third-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, hasn't been able to get his feet off the ground with only 31 receptions and zero touchdowns on 59 targets over his first two seasons.
If there's one thing we know Russell Wilson does well, it's deliver the football down the field to athletic wide receivers. But this is practice in shorts, and nobody should be getting worked up over a highlight play in June from a 36-year-old quarterback.
The Pittsburgh Steelers won't miss Russell Wilson in 2025 despite showing promise at the Giants' OTAs
It doesn't take long to forget the torment that Russell Wilson put the Pittsburgh Steelers through last season. After Mike Tomlin made the executive decision to bench quarterback Justin Fields ahead of Week 7, Wilson looked like he was about to give the team a spark. Sadly, the veteran crumbled down the stretch against good competition as his offense managed just 14 points per game over the final five contests (including the playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens).
Because the season ended in disaster, the Steelers didn't express much interest in bringing back Wilson in 2025 (nor should they have). Where they may have messed up is not exceeding the Jets' offer for Fields.
Right now, the quarterback situation in Pittsburgh looks admittedly grim. If Mason Rudolph was forced to start a full season, the veteran would likely be among the worst quarterbacks in 2025. However, all signs seem to point to Aaron Rodgers signing with the Steelers sometime this summer. When that happens, these questions will (mostly) go away.
If you remember, two years back, Kenny Pickett had a perfect passer rating in his second NFL preseason, only to fall flat on his face during his sophomore year with the Steelers. Don't let Russell Wilson fool you with a few flashy plays at practice; we know who he is as a quarterback, and what he offers wouldn't have been enough for Pittsburgh in 2025.