Is it Over for Russell Wilson?

It seems just like yesterday to me that Russell Wilson was regarded as one of the best quarterbacks in football. For the entire 2010s and early 2020s, Wilson was the face of my favorite team, the Seattle Seahawks, helping bring home the franchise's lone Lombardi Trophy in 2013. From that point on, Wilson was one of the best players at his position and was a lock for the Pro Bowl every year, an MVP candidate, and helped guide one of the league's most successful franchises for that period of time in NFL history.

However, after requesting a trade out of Seattle in 2022, Wilson was sent to the Denver Broncos, and his time in Denver did not live up to expectations, to say the least. Russ had a hard time in Denver, and it seemed as if the magic he brought to the field every Sunday in Seattle stayed in the Pacific Northwest.

To put it bluntly, Wilson just looked old during those two years, and the Broncos offense was not good either. Although he was better in 2023 than in 2022, Sean Payton felt that if he wanted to take this club to the next level, he would have to do it without Wilson (and he was proven correct). As a result, Denver cut Wilson following the 2023 season, eating a record $85 million in dead cap.

After being cut by the Broncos, Russ signed a cheap one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and for a hot minute, he looked good. After missing the first six weeks of the season, Wilson threw for 16 touchdowns and just five picks in his 11 regular season starts. While not as good as Seahawks Russ, it is far better than Broncos Russ. He was 6-1 in his first seven starts after taking the starting position, and Pittsburgh looked poised to make some noise in the AFC.

Then it fell apart. The "Russ revival" conversation abruptly stopped as the team suffered five straight losses to close out the season, including an ugly loss in the playoffs against the Ravens. Although he wasn't awful. It was clear he was no longer able to lead a team in big games or spots. Now, he’s a free agent, and with the Steelers appearing locked in on signing the corpse of Aaron Rodgers, I’m sitting here wondering if that was his last go-round as a consistent starter in the NFL.

If Pittsburgh does indeed close the deal with Rodgers, Wilson's already thin options become even thinner. For me, it is not a question of if he can still play, because I think he can. He is no longer a franchise guy at age 36 and hasn't been for a while. At the very least, he could be a high-end backup, but the problem is some names or personalities are just too large to take on that role. Holding a headset for a rookie is just not something I can see Russ doing.  He cares a lot about the narratives surrounding him, and for his closing act to be on the sidelines, I just can't see him accepting it.

So, is it over? I hope not. Maybe a team gives him a chance to start this season, but as time goes on, his options are getting less and less by the day. As a Seahawks fan who saw him at his best, this would be a disappointing way to see one of my all-time favorite players end their career.