This NFL offseason has already got off to a hot start. Saquon Barkley left the New York Giants for their bitter rival in Philadelphia, almost half of the teams have a new starting quarterback and we almost had an active player run for Vice President. Out of all of this, however, one team has really stood out to me, that being the Pittsburgh Steelers. Over the past few weeks, the Steelers have completely emptied out their QB room from a season ago and brought in Russell Wilson and Justin Fields as part of their offensive rebuild. Many have praised the moves, some find it puzzling, but it is an improvement in the position for 2024. But do the moves make any sense in the long run?
Looking back on the previous season and how it ended for the Steelers, it’s easy to say that QB had been an area of need for the team a season ago. The Steelers finished with the 25th most passing yards of the year (3,163 yds) and threw a combined 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Pittsburgh played all three of their quarterbacks––Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph––throughout the season yet still found themselves at 10-7 with a wild card spot. To the surprise of many, it was Rudolph that became the team’s savior over the last couple weeks, willing the team to three straight victories and helping send the team back into the playoffs. Despite making it to the postseason, it became yet another year in which the team failed to earn a playoff win, something the team has failed to do since 2016.
This year highlighted the team’s main problem, not having a contingency plan for when Ben Roethlisberger retired a couple years ago. Once Roethlisberger was gone, that’s when the team decided to focus on getting their next quarterback, not securing one before he had left. The team could’ve done something similar to what the Packers did with Jordan Love, draft a first-round QB and let them develop under your franchise QB for a few years before moving on. This led to the Steelers drafting Pickett and having Trubisky being his “mentor” for two years. In all honesty, Roethlisberger seemed to have little faith in Pickett and may not have been the best mentor figure for him, but recent reports make it seem Pickett may have been a problem too. Rumors have spread of character issues with Pickett, going as far as reports of him refusing to dress for Pittsburgh’s final regular season game against Baltimore due to Rudolph starting and demanding a trade as soon as Wilson signed.
Not having a plan at QB after Roethlisberger has led to two years of mediocrity, that’s why the Steelers are bringing in both Wilson and Fields. Wilson brings in good character and leadership on a one-year deal so he can lead the team and help develop Fields into the team’s eventual starter going forward. That is also not a knock-on Wilson’s ability on the football field either, as his 26 touchdown passes this season were more than the Steelers have had in the last two seasons combined (12 in 2022 and 13 in 2023), but at age 35, it makes sense why the team traded for Fields.
A whole 10 years younger at 25-years-old, Fields brings in three years of starting experience to the Pittsburgh Steelers. While the Bears haven’t been the most successful team during Fields’ tenure, he comes into the Steel City with plenty of potential. In 2022, Fields finished the year playing 15 games, throwing for 2,242 yards and 17 touchdowns and rushing for 1,143 yards. In order to be more successful in Pittsburgh, Fields will need to lower his turnovers and sack numbers, but Wilson can help with that development. That’s why it was so important the team announced Wilson to be the starter even after acquiring Fields, allowing Fields to focus on developing this year and keeping the media from adding unwanted pressure. Though his fifth-year option will most likely be declined, it wouldn’t surprise me to see Fields being the Steelers starter in 2025 and beyond.
While the offseason isn’t even close to being done, there is still a lot to be done for the Steelers. During this restructuring of the offense, the team traded Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers for CB Donte Jackson. The already stellar defense has also added MLB Patrick Queen from the Ravens and SS DeShon Elliott from the Dolphins leaving most of the glaring holes on the offensive line and wide receiver positions. Names like Mike Williams and Tyler Boyd have been floated around for the Steelers but not many moves have been made on the offensive skills positions front. Pittsburgh did sign WR Van Jefferson from Atlanta who reunites with new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, but a lot more needs to be done on the offensive end if this team wants to compete in 2024.