Steelers Reportedly Want to Keep Russell Wilson and Justin Fields
According to a report on Sunday from Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the Pittsburgh Steelers want to keep quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Justin Fields beyond the 2024 season.
Wilson joined the Steelers as a free agent on March 15th - two days after he was released by the Denver Broncos. Pittsburgh signed the nine-time Pro Bowl QB to the veteran minimum at $1.2 million.
Following the trade of Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles, the Steelers acquired Fields from the Chicago Bears, in exchange for a 2025 conditional sixth round draft pick. Later on in the offseason, Steelers GM Omar Khan declined Fields’ fifth-year option for ‘25.
Fields opened the season as Pittsburgh’s QB1, this after Wilson had been recovering from a calf injury. The 25-year-old Fields played very well in Wilson’s absence, with 10 touchdowns (five passing; five rushing, one interception, and a passer rating of 93.3.
Since taking over for Fields as the starter, Wilson has a 10-3 TD-INT ratio, along with 104.3 passer rating. Meanwhile, Fields is being used primarily in run design packages.
The dynamic of the Steelers wanting to keep both Wilson and Fields could be a complicated matter. Although it’s possible Wilson could return to Pittsburgh, on reasonable contract, given the amount of money he’s still owed from the Broncos, Fields is a young QB, who based on how he performed during Wilson’s injury, would likely draw interest from several teams looking to address a QB1 this offseason.