Russell Wilson has interest in joining the Steelers (and the feeling is mutual)

Just when Pittsburgh Steelers fans were beginning to lose hope that this team would make a move for a quarterback, we discovered that they are planning a meeting with one of the biggest names on the market. According to Gerry Dulac of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Steelers are tentatively planning to meet with former Broncos quarterback, Russell Wilson.

This expected meeting threw a curveball at us, as recent reports suggested that Pittsburgh had 'no interest' in signing Russell Wilson. The same report from Mike DeFabo of The Athletic suggested that the Steelers were content with Kenny Pickett and that they wouldn't pursue a trade for Justin Fields or sign a player like Kirk Cousins or Baker Mayfield in free agency.

While Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan each gave a glowing endorsement to Pickett early this offseason, perhaps they weren't being entirely truthful when it came to their comments about their former first-round pick.

Russell Wilson won't want to sign with a team to ride the bench. Despite his struggles over the past two seasons in Denver, Wilson is still a nine-time Pro Bowler with plenty of playoff wins to go with his Super Bowl hardware. Even in a down season in 2023, Wilson still managed to throw for 26 touchdown passes in 15 games -- exactly double what Pickett has in his first two NFL seasons combined.

Russell Wilson would be an improvement at QB for Steelers

Denver's trade for Russell Wilson during the 2022 offseason could go down as one of the worst in NFL history. The Broncos gave up multiple first-round picks only to turn around and hand out one of the biggest contracts ever in the NFL. Now they have to eat loads of dead money just to get out of his deal.

While signing Wilson might seem like a disastrous move for the Steelers, the former Pro Bowl quarterback won't cost Pittsburgh a fraction of the price that Denver paid to acquire his services. Recent reports suggest that Wilson may be willing to sign as low as the veteran minimum.

Knowing that Wilson is available, Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan are at least doing their due diligence. At 35 years old, it's hard to know how much is left in the tank, but there's no question that Wilson would still be an upgrade over Kenny Pickett at the quarterback position.

Even in his down year in 2023 with the Broncos, Wilson earned a 98.0 passer rating and 7.2 adjusted yards per attempt. In comparison, Pickett has a career passer rating of 78.8 and his 5.8 adjusted yards per attempt in his career is as bad as it gets.

Russell Wilson would be no more than a stop-gap option for the Pittsburgh Steelers who may not even be guaranteed a starting role right away. There are better options out there if Omar Khan is willing to fork up, but it looks like Wilson has a real chance to join the Steelers in 2024.

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