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How Steelers Landed Russell Wilson

Two big names pushed the Pittsburgh Steelers to sign Russell Wilson.

Stephen Thompson

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PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers made their first massive move of the offseason by signing former All-Pro and Super Bowl champion Russell Wilson to a one-year, veteran minimum contract and the move to add him had been in the works for a long time. 

Wilson had some friends in the Steelers organization long before he actually inked his deal, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, and they were pushing hard for general manager Omar Khan to pull the trigger. 

"There were a couple of strong advocates for Russell Wilson to Pittsburgh throughout the process," Pelissero said. "One of them was the veteran defensive lineman Cam Heyward. ... The other was head coach Mike Tomlin, who spent a lot of time with Wilson during a visit to the team facility."

The Steelers got Wilson for as cheap as possible. He'll make just $1.2 million next season - on top of a $39 million buyout from the Denver Broncos - but Wilson's agent was pushing for more long-term security for the 35-year old signal-caller who's moving into an uncertain period in his career. 

"The money for this season is practically irrelevant. Russell Wilson is still due $39 million from the Broncos this season. It is subject to offsets, so he does not get another penny for playing for Pittsburgh," Pelissero said. "However, Wilson's agent, Mark Rodgers, was calling around the league in recent days trying to see if some team would agree to tack on an unprecedented, massive player option for 2025 that would actually give Russell Wilson the right to lock in future guarantees." 

Luckily for the Steelers, no other team bit on the offer to give Wilson a player-friendly contract option, so he fell right into the their lap. Wilson had one final conversation with Tomlin before committing to the Steelers and signing his contract and marking the start of a new era in Pittsburgh. 

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Stephen Thompson
STEPHEN THOMPSON

Stephen Thompson graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and political science from Pitt in April 2022 after spending four years as a sports writer and editor at The Pitt News, the University of Pittsburgh's independent, student-run newspaper. He primarily worked the Pitt men's basketball beat, and filled in on coverage of football, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and lacrosse, in addition to other sports as needed. His work at The Pitt News has won awards from the Pennsylvania News Media Association and Associated College Press. During the spring and summer of 2021, Stephen interned for Pittsburgh Sports Now, covering baseball in western Pennsylvania. Hailing from Washington D.C., family ties have cultivated a love of Boston's professional teams and Pitt athletics, and a fascination with sports in general. 

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