Mason Rudolph was the starting quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers when they lost a wild-card playoff game. After Kenny Pickett, who was 7-5 before suffering an injury, was replaced, Rudolph went 3-0. In the other two games, Mitch Trubisky started and finished 0-2.
This coming season, Pittsburgh is set to meet the Broncos in Denver; Wilson may make a return. It is anticipated that the NFL will unveil its league schedule in May.
Wilson was granted permission to negotiate with other clubs, but the Broncos notified him last week that he would be released on Wednesday, the start of the new league season.
The team said on social media last week, “We are excited to improve this offseason and will have the flexibility to get better through the draft and free agency. We thank Russell for his contributions and dedications to our team and community and wish him the best as he continues his career.”
Wilson claimed that the Broncos had threatened to sideline him for the final nine games of the previous season if he didn’t push back his US$37 million injury guarantee in his contract, despite the fact that he had signed a nearly quarter-billion-dollar extension before even playing a down in Denver.
Wilson refused to modify his contract and went on to start seven more games before being benched—a move that Payton said was motivated by football, not money.
Additionally, the move was made less than two weeks after Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan declared the organization had “complete faith” in Pickett, the former University of Pittsburgh star who lived next door and has struggled to make an impact at the most crucial position on the field.
Since the day the Steelers drafted Pickett with the 20th overall pick in the 2022 draft, head coach Mike Tomlin of Pittsburgh has stood by him at every stage. Days following Pittsburgh’s playoff defeat to Buffalo, Tomlin acknowledged that 2024 would be a “big” year for Pickett and that the intention was to bring in competition during training camp.
The popular Rudolph, who will become a free agent on Wednesday, won’t likely face competition from this point on. Instead, it will likely come from a guy with a resume fit for the Hall of Fame who has failed to fit in in Denver and has only won one playoff game since 2016.
Wilson joins a squad that boasts studs on defense in safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and perennial All-Pro outside linebacker T.J. Watt, as well as plenty of young on offense in running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren and wide receivers George Pickens and Diontae Johnson.
Pittsburgh seems eager to bridge the gap with the AFC elite, which the Steelers haven’t been a part of for at least five years, even if Watt and Fitzpatrick are both in their primes. Pittsburgh hasn’t won a postseason game since defeating Kansas City in the divisional round of the 2016 playoffs, but team president Art Rooney II declared in January that it was “time to get some wins.”
Enter Wilson and Arthur Smith, the first-year offensive coordinator who was hired last month to invigorate a team that has four times in the previous five years finished with a point per game of 21st place or worse.
Pittsburgh will have a lot of freedom in free agency to address spots throughout the offensive and defensive lines, as well as the secondary and inside linebackers, now that Wilson is available at a low cost. With the team experiencing its longest postseason losing streak since Franco Harris’ “Immaculate Reception” more than 50 years ago, Wilson’s arrival signals an “all-in” approach. The team cut several players in recent weeks, most notably center Mason Cole and veteran defensive back Patrick Peterson, to create more flexibility.
