Steelers Now
The Pittsburgh Steelers would like to sign one of their two incumbent quarterbacks to a long-term contract this offseason, president Art Rooney II said during his annual press conference with local beat writers on Monday.
Rooney said that he think it’s unlikely that the Steelers will sign both of them, and that his preference would be for more than the one-year deal both players played under in 2024.
Perhaps the Steelers could go in a different direction and trade for Super Bowl champion Matthew Stafford, who’s coming off a solid campaign at age 36 for the Los Angeles Rams. Former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky thinks it wouldn’t hurt to make a phone call to L.A.
“Honestly, if I were the Giants, if I were the Steelers, if I were a lot of teams that would be my number one call. Try to see kind of what the plan is for Matthew Stafford,” Orlovsky said on NFL Live.
There’s been rumblings that Stafford could retire. After the Rams’ season-ending loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional Round, Stafford was asked about his future. Stafford signed a 4-year, $160 million extension with the Rams in March of 2022, so he’s signed through the 2026 season.
“As far as my future, it’s 30 minutes after the last game, so I’ll take some time to think about it,” Stafford said. “But I feel like I was playing some pretty good ball.”
Rooney made it clear that figuring out the best option at quarterback will be a top priority for the team this offseason.
“I think they’re both capable quarterbacks, and my preference would be to sign one of them. So that will be the priority, and I think that will give us the best opportunity to move forward,” Rooney said about the possibility of re-signing either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields. “Obviously, we’ll be looking in the draft as well. We’ve got a whole quarterback room to fill, and so there’s jobs open in there, and so I wouldn’t be surprised if we look in the draft as well either this year or next. And so that’s got to be the priority.”
The Las Vegas Raiders are the odds-on favorite (+150) to land Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson in free agency, according to Bovada Sportsbook. The Tennessee Titans, Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants are tied for the second-best odds at +850. With Carroll being named the new head coach in Las Vegas, a reunion with Wilson seems very likely.
Wilson has already expressed his desire to return to playing for the Steelers in 2025, but his status with the team seems up in the air.
A report by Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated two weeks ago said the team grew frustrated with Wilson down the stretch run, but would love to keep working with Justin Fields, who started the first six games of the season while Wilson was hurt.
