Russell Wilson is technically still a member of the Denver Broncos, but he's already found a new team for 2024.
Wilson will not officially be released by Denver until the new league year begins Wednesday, but he was informed last week the Broncos would not be bringing him and his albatross of a contract back for another season. Denver then allowed Wilson to speak with other teams. It didn't take long for the veteran quarterback to receive interest, as he was spotted at Newark Airport after reportedly meeting with the Giants before then taking a flight to Pittsburgh. That weekend meeting was productive, as Wilson is now a member of the Steelers heading into 2024.
Wilson joins former Ocean Township star Kenny Pickett as the two quarterbacks on the Steelers' roster. The former first round pick out of the University of Pittsburgh may finally see his time in the steel city come to an end after spending the past seven years there as a college and pro quarterback.
Pickett likely to enter 2024 as backup
The end of the 2023 season was not a promising omen for Pickett. Although he was cleared to play, the Pittsburgh staff opted to stick with Mason Rudolph through the end of the regular season and for the team's playoff game against the Bills. Mark Madden, a prominent sports radio personality at Pittsburgh's 105.9 The X, tweeted that Pickett refused to be the backup before the Steelers' game against Seattle.
That speculation appeared to be refuted when Pickett served as the backup and dressed for the team's final regular season game and playoff game.
For now, Pickett is still a Steeler and will likely remain with Pittsburgh for this season. From an organizational perspective, the team now spends among the least on the quarterback position in the NFL with $3,836,701 in cap money dedicated to the position. That means at the current rate, the Steelers can build up other positions while turning to Wilson (or Pickett) as quarterbacks that just need to shepherd the offense while keeping mistakes at a minimum.
Pickett has two years left on his contract, making him at the very least an affordable backup. He was also the first ever draft pick of Steelers general manager Omar Khan as first round selection in 2022, so Pickett likely still has a fair amount of good favor in the front office. Rudolph and Mitchell Trubisky, the team's other two quarterbacks last season, are both gone.
But the major change for Pittsburgh this offseason was at offensive coordinator, as the team brought in former Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith to run the offense. It appears Smith has made his preferred selection at quarterback with the addition of Wilson.
Prior to taking over Atlanta, Smith worked wonders in Tennessee revitalizing the career of Ryan Tannehill with a play-action passing game that worked off Derrick Henry. The Titans made the AFC championship game with that formula, and the Steelers will surely implement a similar offensive model with Wilson and running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren.
With that in mind, Pickett seems to be relegated to a backup role for the foreseeable future.
Outlook for Pickett beyond Pittsburgh
Pickett turns 26 in June, still very young in his NFL career. But with a robust quarterback market, it seems unlikely he would be traded this offseason to have a better chance at starting. The best case scenario is that Pickett thrives in practice under the run-heavy and play-action centric offense of Smith, potentially pushing Wilson for the starting job.
But that's wishful thinking. Previous offensive coordinator Matt Canada was notoriously erratic as a coach for the Steelers, but he had prior ties to Pickett dating back to the quarterback's senior season at Ocean. Canada was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Pitt Panthers when Pickett committed to the program in the summer of 2016.
There was profound optimism when Pickett was selected 20th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. Reunited with a former coach and staying in the same city, he was set up for a smooth transition to the NFL. But nothing is smooth in pro football, and so the former standout Jersey quarterback will now have to navigate a turbulent future to regain one of the 32 starting quarterback jobs in the league.
