Steelers Coaches Are Reportedly Really Bullish on Russell Wilson
NFL Network lead draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah has caught the same drift out of Pittsburgh in regards to the Steelers’ quarterback competition. Unless something unforeseen happens, Russell Wilson will be the starting quarterback in Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons. It’s Wilson’s job to lose.
“I’m really pleased with what I heard coming (out) of there with Russ,” Jeremiah said on the Rich Eisen Show. “I know there’s been a lot of talk with him and [Justin] Fields. It’s Russell Wilson’s gig. Everything I’ve been told, they’ve been impressed with how he’s thrown. Throwing with anticipation.”
Mark Kaboly of The Athletic listed Fields as a ‘loser’ in OTAs and minicamp mainly because he feels that Russell Wilson has a chokehold on the QB1 job. That’s the general feeling from most. Wilson was leap and bounds better than Fields this spring.
More will be revealed at training camp when pads come on, however. But, as Mike Tomlin repeatedly stated this offseason, Wilson is in pole position to be the starter.
Jeremiah also heard that Wilson has been an outstanding teammate, which isn’t surprising. Wilson disclosed at OTAs that he and Justin Fields took the offensive linemen out to dinner at the Capital Grille in downtown Pittsburgh to build camaraderie. It’s one of many examples this offseason that Wilson has stepped up as a leader.
Wilson has embraced the city of Pittsburgh. At pretty much every big event in the city this offseason, Wilson was there.
“The dedication and work ethic has been described to me as off the charts. He’s there all the time,” Jeremiah said. “He’s really worked to get to know his teammates and develop those relationships. They’re really bullish on him.”
Wilson sat next to Steelers offensive lineman Spencer Anderson at the Penguins game in April. Anderson was a seventh-round pick out of Maryland last year. That’s a prime example of Wilson really working to get to know his teammates and develop those relationships.
He also took a group of the offensive linemen to the Pirates game in April as a tribute for their hard work in the team’s first phase of workouts.
“They’ve been working their butts off every day,” Wilson said. “How hard they’ve been working, it was cool. We had the weekend off, so we wanted to be able to celebrate together, hang out together.”
Fields raved about Wilson’s leadership at OTAs.
“It’s been great just learning from him every day,” he said. “Just how detailed he is with everything. Just how he works. Everything he does. The way he acts around his teammates. He’s been great. A great teammate to me. A great mentor to me so it is awesome to have a guy like Russell in the room. You get to learn from him and kind of pick his brain on some stuff.”
