At some point between the Steelers signing Russell Wilson and the results of Week 7, Denver must have sent several thousands of cases of Orange Crush to Pittsburgh for our fans to drink, which obviously soured the Pittsburgh fans' perspective on Wilson. Since the Steelers' blowout win over the Jets, everyone who was critical of the decision to roll with Wilson has issued an apology hand over fist on their Twitter feed.
Given that Denver ran Wilson out of town faster than the Colts snuck out of Baltimore, Denver fans have been steadfast in their quest to destroy whatever was left of Russell Wilson's reputation. They have made Bo Nix out to be the second coming of John Elway and told Steelers fans that Russell Wilson was no better than Tim Tebow.
Whether that was the Denver agenda or not, Steelers fans and even Denver fans have a healthy portion of Crow today. Pittsburgh is still in shock of the Steelers' rout over the Jets in a prime-time game, which saw Russell Wilson debut in his first-ever regular-season game with the Steelers.
Why dismissing Russell Wilson was a bad idea
Utilizing Justin Fields while paying dividends for the Steelers felt like driving a Yugo while you have a nice shiny Ferrari sitting in your garage. Sure, the Yugo got you where you wanted to go, but the Ferrari makes the trip much more fun.
The Steelers finally pulled the Ferrari out of the garage, and to everyone's surprise, it was better than what the dealer in Denver had advised us. It fired on all cylinders. It felt like Terry Bradshaw's return as a starter some 50 years after being benched for Joe Gilliam only to lead the Steelers to Superbowl IX.
However, according to Denver, Wilson caused the Broncos to collapse after they traded for him and gave him a disastrous contract nearly on par with what Cleveland gave Deshaun Watson. At least the Broncos had an escape clause, yet they did their best to tarnish Wilson's reputation in the process. Steeler's fans bought it hook, line, and sinker.
Well, not anymore. Wilson's performance has turned a bunch of haters into believers. Now the question is, will there be enough room on the Wilson bandwagon for all of the initial naysayers?
In reality, Steelers fans should have begun to question Russell Wilson's legitimacy when this article from Denver Sports appeared online. Denver fans essentially gave Sean Payton a pass for his blunders and made Rusell Wilson the scapegoat. After watching him play against the Jets, there might be some truth to that report.
Time and again, before Ben Roethlisberger came to Pittsburgh and after his retirement, you would see dynamic quarterback trades in the NFL or free agent signings. Then, you would question when the Steelers would make that dynamic move and snatch a quarterback until they signed Russell Wilson.
Once they did and you saw it was Wilson, did you ever think you would live to see the day Wilson played in a Steelers uniform? The odds are no.
Nonetheless, he finally played and turned the Steelers from pretenders to contenders. Watching the Steelers down the stretch as we head into division play in three weeks will be fun, especially if we can punk the Ravens and take the lead in the AFC North. If that happens, Pittsburgh fans owe Denver 39 million thanks, and Russell Wilson a debt of gratitude for his transformative role.