The Pittsburgh Steelers fell to the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs on Saturday night, ending their season. And it sounds like it likely ended Russell Wilson’s stint with the team.
The Steelers signed Russell Wilson to a one-year contract during the offseason after he was cut by the Denver Broncos. Wilson is set to become an unrestricted free agent for the rest of the season, and one prominent NFL insider does not expect him to re-sign with the team.
NFL insider Dan Graziano of ESPN recently indicated that he believed the team would choose to part ways with Wilson after the season if he did not lead the team to a playoff victory.
“Oh, it’s a fact. I mean, look, there’s nothing really compelling for them to bring him back. He’s on a one-year minimum salary deal. There was never any commitment beyond this year and if what happens at the end is they fall apart because he started playing poorly, then they’ll just go find whatever next year’s Russell Wilson-type solution is,” Graziano said, according to Bola VIP.
“I think he’s a guy they liked, but I don’t think there is any sure thing to be back there at all especially if they’re one and done in the playoffs.”
Obviously, that’s exactly how things played out – the team did fall apart down the stretch in large part to Wilson playing poorly, and they did go one and done in the playoffs, falling in the first round to the Ravens.
The team has not made any final decisions on Wilson’s status – those decisions will likely not come for another few weeks – but this report does suggest that Wilson is not expected to be back with the Steelers next year.
It’s not clear what the Steelers plan to do at the quarterback position next season if Wilson is not returning. But it seems likely there will be a new starter next season.
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