The Denver Broncos tried and failed to take advantage of what Russell Wilson has left in the tank, and now his new team might fall into the same trap. Russell Wilson was cut from the Denver Broncos after 30 starts, 11 wins, and 42 touchdown passes. We all had higher expectations for this trade, but unfortunately, it just didn't work out for Denver.
And you can't really fault GM George Paton for making the move in the first place. Well, Wilson didn't take long to find a new team, signing a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the veteran minimum. The Broncos are on the hook for paying their former QB nearly $40 million in 2024, so that's why his deal with Pittsburgh is for pennies.
Well, according to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, this Russell Wilson experience isn't expected to last just one year:
Russell Wilson signed a one-year contract with the Steelers for the vet minimum because the Broncos were paying him $39 million in 2024. But Wilson and the Steelers intend to do a longer deal at the end of the season, per sources.
— Gerry Dulac (@gerrydulac) March 16, 2024
The way Dulac frames this report is interesting. Do the Steelers and Russell Wilson already have this in mind? Obviously, I don't think the Steelers would have interest in doing this if Wilson plays poorly in 2024, but the way this report is framed makes me think that the Steelers front office believes that he'll play well, and I guess you can't fault them.
New offensive coordinator Arthur Smith was able to revive the career of Ryan Tannehill back in Tennessee, so maybe they think he could do something similar with Wilson, who has always been the better QB. If this is the case, on a side note, what would their plans be for Justin Fields, who they recently sent a six-round pick for?
Even if Russell Wilson plays well, I'm not sure a long-term extension would even be warranted, as he'd then enter the 2025 season turning 37 years old and would probably be financially tied to their organization for at least a couple of seasons. The move to potentially extend a declining QB could end up blowing up in their faces, making it yet another team falling into a Russell Wilson trap.