You could say Russell Wilson's 2024 NFL season as the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback was met with mixed reviews. While he was markedly better than his disastrous run in Denver, he looked like a quarterback who could keep a well-oiled machine on the road, but not adept enough of a driver to take this muscle car to the promised land. He was just a guy when the Steelers needed him most.
Regardless of if he re-signs with the Steelers or not, Wilson could potentially doom Pittsburgh either way, depending on what they do this offseason. This is because he has made it possible for the Steelers to pursue someone like Kirk Cousins this offseason. The Atlanta Falcons could cut Cousins, just like Denver did with Wilson, only for the Steelers to sign him for something like the vet minimum.
Here is what ESPN's Adam Schefter had to say about it on Wednesday while appearing on NFL Live.
"This is a situation that looks an awful lot like what Denver and Russell Wilson went through last offseason before Denver decided ultimately to move on from him, when it said it wouldn't necessarily do that. They released him, he wound up signing a one-year deal with a low salary in Pittsburgh, and that's how I think people across the league believe this situation will unfold with the Falcons releasing Cousins right around the start of the new league year."
Here is more from Schefter tying Wilson and Cousins together heading into another NFL offseason.
Cousins to the Steelers is a possibility, but he may not be as successful as what Wilson was last year.
Pittsburgh Steelers are between a rock and a hard place at quarterback
It is hard to see logic prevailing in Pittsburgh at the quarterback position this offseason because none of the outcomes are great. They could use their first-round pick to reach on someone like Jaxson Dart, Quinn Ewers or Jalen Milroe, but none of them are going to help the Steelers win big right away. Re-signing Wilson or Justin Fields may not do that either. This applies to ending up with Cousins, too.
What I am getting at is Wilson's relative success last season is going to provide enough evidence for the Steelers to potentially either run it back or go with next year's model of the same old crap. Cousins struggled down the stretch in Atlanta because he had no zip on the football. A previously undisclosed shoulder injury culminated in him getting benched in favor of rookie Michael Penix Jr.
Once again, we have arrived at the elephant in the room with the Steelers. For as long as the franchise is beholden to head coach Mike Tomlin, nothing is ever going to change. He will find a way to win nine or 10 games every year, but at the expense of the team ever getting out of the middle of the pack in the deep AFC. Cousins, Fields, Wilson, it does not matter. None can overcome Tomlin.
In a way, I kind of feel like the Steelers owe it to themselves to at least look at the quarterback class in the 2025 NFL Draft. They are not going to end up with either Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward. However, what if Dart, Ewers or Milroe becomes a star for them? Pittsburgh would have its next version of Ben Roethlisberger under center, which would allow the Steelers to stay playoff relevant.
While I do expect for Cousins to play well outside of Atlanta next year, Pittsburgh is not the ideal fit.