NFL Sources on Russell Wilson's Leash With Justin Fields Looming | MAILBAG

Pittsburgh's QB Situation, The Detroit Lions' Super Bowl Aspirations, and More!

Footballpalooza, also known as the standalone Thursday Night NFL regular season opener, certainly delivered as Patrick Mahomes and the explosive Kansas City Chiefs offense vanquished the Baltimore Ravens by the margin of tight end Isaiah Likely’s big toenail to kickoff the 2024 campaign.

If Week 1 in Arrowhead is an indication of the high drama of what lies ahead, this season is going to be a treat.

Let’s get right to your questions in this week’s Football Friday Mailbag!

Do you think Russell Wilson loses his starting job before the bye week? (Ganeshran on Threads)

Pittsburgh’s quarterback situation is simultaneously one of the most fascinating in the NFL as well as one of the league’s biggest enigmas.

On one hand, the combination of Wilson and Fields isn’t just a significant upgrade over Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, and Mitchell Trubisky, perhaps to the point combined with Arthur Smith’s arrival as offensive coordinator to lift the Steelers back into the playoff chase.

However, on the other, after Wilson struggled to a career-low completion percentage in 2023 while his 19 interceptions across his two seasons in Denver matches a career-high for any two-year stretch of his career, it is fair to question just how much upside the 35-year-old signal caller gives the offense.

Given the revolving door of starting quarterbacks who have spent time watching tape in head coach Mike Tomlin’s office since Ben Roethlisberger retired following the 2022 season, opinions are split inside the league on just how strong Wilson’s hold on the starting job is and should be.

“They just named him captain so they may be more patient than I thought,” an NFL Offensive Coordinator tells me. “I’ve not been a fan of Russ for the past three or four years. I think he’s a safer pick, he’s not going to turn it over.”

Not everyone I spoke to, though, believes that Wilson’s teammates voting him captain or a schedule that features just one game against a team that made the playoffs last season, before the bye week, will be enough for the former Bronco and Seahawk to stave off Fields.