Whispers surfaced during Super Bowl week suggesting that the Pittsburgh Steelers could soon re-sign current backup quarterback Justin Fields en route to moving on from starter Russell Wilson after a single season together.
For an update shared on Monday, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated said that he remains convinced “Wilson is probably going elsewhere” at some point after the new league year opens on March 12.
“I don’t think I’m breaking much new ground in saying that this year was challenging for the Pittsburgh staff,” Breer explained. “Wilson’s calf injury in the summer gave Justin Fields an audition that some thought should’ve led to the former Chicago Bear seizing the starting job. When (head coach) Mike Tomlin went against strong sentiment to give Fields that assignment when Wilson got healthy, the Steelers responded with six wins in seven games.”
Tomlin’s decision to go from Fields to a healthy Wilson seemed to be the right one when the veteran helped what was a 4-2 team enter the middle of December at 10-3. However, Breer noted that Wilson’s “limitations in the dropback game and throwing the ball over the middle of the field” played a part in Pittsburgh ending the season with a five-game losing streak and a wild-card playoff defeat at the Baltimore Ravens.
According to Pro Football Reference, Wilson ended Week 18 ranked 26th in the NFL among qualified players with a 51.3 adjusted QBR, 26th with a 63.7% completion percentage and 17th with an average of 225.6 passing yards per game. Over 11 contests, he tallied 16 touchdown passes and five interceptions.
Last week, Steelers/NFL reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala of CBS Sports said supposed details about the alleged issues between Wilson and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith that arose during the second half of this season were “very clearly coming from one side.” Kinkhabwala added at that time that she learned from “talking to coaches and general managers around the league” that “there’s just not a market for” Wilson coming off his performances with Pittsburgh.
“This week, some pro-Wilson narratives surfaced, and my sense is that probably wouldn’t be very well received by the Steelers as they mull their future at the position,” Breer continued in Monday’s piece.
Breer also hinted that the Steelers could be among the teams that may take a swing at landing Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford even though it’s believed Stafford will stay put through the start of next season.
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