Just how short of a leash do the Steelers need to keep Russell Wilson on?

The Pittsburgh Steelers had one of the biggest quarterback room turnovers in the league last year. All three of their rostered quarterbacks are now playing on another team, and in their place are four completely new faces to this team. Of those four, the most highly touted names are Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, with Wilson in the now infamous pole position for the starting role.

While giving Wilson the initial job given his experience, history of success, and stability as a player makes sense, the Steelers can’t make the mistake of keeping their saddle hitched to him for too long. The team has to let Fields be in a realistic competition with him with the shot of actually taking over as the starter if things go sideways.

While Fields has shown a litany of issues as a player so far in his career, there is no questioning that he has the natural talent to be a game-changer as a quarterback. Those pieces need to come together, and it isn’t a certain thing, but he has a better chance of being a top-five quarterback two seasons from now than Wilson.

This isn’t to diminish Wilson’s accolades either, as his underdog story was well documented and he enjoyed an extremely successful period as one of the league's top quarterbacks. Given his age and recent decline though, it seems like his best days are behind him. While he can provide you with some stability at the position for now, his best days are likely behind him.

Steelers need to keep Russell Wilson on a short leash

While fluctuating your quarterback room is never a great idea, the Steelers need to find some answers for 2025 and beyond. They have a better shot at having something in Fields, albeit the most likely option may be neither panning out given the struggles both players have faced in recent years.

So what should the plan be for this year? Despite Fields having a strong training camp so far, the Steelers are going to allow Wilson the first few starts of the year. The only thing that would seemingly change that is if Fields looks elite in the preseason and Wilson looks like a dud.

The Steelers need to set a hard deadline to reevaluate the position after week five. Unless Wilson looks abysmal, you keep him as your starter through that stretch. The goal of this is simple: does Wilson look like his old self and is making dynamic plays, or has regression continued to set in and his play is average at best?

Wilson's play will likely be somewhere in between those two extremes, but even then a quarterback change could be warranted. Now, if the Steelers are 4-1 or better in that stretch you are keeping Wilson in. Something is obviously working. However, if you are 3-2 or worse, Fields could make a lot of sense.

This gives Wilson a fair shot at things. The only elite defense he would face in that span is the Cowboys, so he should have the opportunity to show that his Denver years were a fluke. If they were and he lights it up, then the job remains his. Even if he doesn’t but he is doing enough for the team to win, you wouldn’t want to change that.

If the team is middling though, you have to turn it over to Fields for a few weeks. This would allow him to see four games before the bye week, and it would allow him the chance to prove his worth. Again, if he lights it up, or the team is winning more around him, the job is his. If not, you can go back to Wilson post bye.

Hopping around quarterbacks is never a good sign for the team, and I’ll be blunt by saying that if by the bye week, the Steelers have benched both Fields and Wilson at some point you likely aren’t looking at a good team. I’d rather know that now than still have questions about that in the offseason though.

If it were up to me, the leash would be short on Wilson, and I would be open to assessing his performance by week five. If he finds a way to turn back the clock, great, then he remains the starter and you gave up a sixth-round pick for a backup. If he is still the lackluster Wilson from Denver though, you owe it to yourself to see what you have in Fields. The worst-case scenario is he isn’t it either, but at least you know that heading into next offseason.