This was always bound to happen. The prophecy was foretold long ago. When the Pittsburgh Steelers brought in Justin Fields and Russell Wilson to compete for their starting quarterback job a season ago, only one was going to come out on top. While Wilson eventually supplanted Fields during the season, that did not land well by some members of the organization. It is why Wilson may not return.
According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, the Steelers are far more likely to bring Fields back on another contract over Wilson. Fields is younger and less likely to throw his coaches under the bus. Wilson regularly made that a thing when quarterbacking the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos. He just did that to Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith earlier this offseason. He has to go already.
Here is what Steelers president Art Rooney II had to say about the situation earlier this offseason.
“I think both of them see themselves as starters, and I don’t know that they want to share the same job again next year. So, I would say most likely we probably don’t wind up bringing them both back.”
The Steelers are between a rock and a hard place when it comes to addressing its quarterback situation. They won too many games to be in a realistic position to draft a franchise quarterback. Picking at No. 21, they woud be reaching for Jaxson Dart, Quinn Ewers or Jalen Milroe with that selection. They cannot afford to spend big money on a decent player like Sam Darnold this winter.
I think that is why the best thing they can do to start is to roll with Fields as the starter for 2025.
Pittsburgh Steelers learned with Russell Wilson's other teams know well
Since the Steelers never put themselves in a situation where they can improve in the draft, they have to be especially savvy in free agency. Getting Fields and Wilson for bargain-basement prices for a season was the right way to go for them last year. Again, I am okay with either of them coming back, although I prefer Fields for a myriad of reasons. We just have to accept that both will not be back.
Rooney was absolutely right in that his evaluation of both quarterbacks were that of starters. They may not be high-end starters, but they should view themselves as such. Wilson does not have that much longer in the league, with maybe one more realistic starting opportunity. As for Fields, this is his last best chance to prove to everyone he can be a franchise guy. I am quite doubtful, but we shall see.
Ultimately, Wilson has proven to be more of a front-runner than many of us have realized. He seems to be a product of the system he plays in and not the other way around. When the vibes are good, he is beloved by the national media for his diplomatic approach to everything. When the going gets tough, he is far more likely to take his ball and go home than his counterpart Fields, who just wants to play.
None of the Steelers' quarterback options are great, but I am far more on board with Fields here.