Steelers' Russell Wilson Commended For Doing Something Extremely Different Than He Did In Seattle And Denver

Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin surprised many when he started Russell Wilson over Justin Fields for the team's Week 7 matchup against the New York Jets. Wilson suffered a calf injury early in the preseason, which allowed Fields to take over the "pole position" that Tomlin had granted him. Despite winning, Fields' performance wasn't mind-blowing; he struggled to read the field and connect with open receivers. However, he took the team to 4-2, and many felt he deserved to be rewarded. 

When Wilson came to Pittsburgh from the Denver Broncos, it was amid a flurry of negative press. Once the darling of the Seattle Seahawks after helping them win a Super Bowl and taking them to a second one, Wilson seemed to burn bridges everywhere he went. The Seahawks supposedly grew tired of his behavior. When Sean Payton took over as the Broncos' head coach during Wilson's second season in Denver, he reportedly found him impossible to work with and basically paid him to leave. 

Even Steelers Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith was recently called out for possibly taking shots at the nine-time Pro Bowler. However, on a recent episode of The Facility Podcast, co-host Emmanuel Acho said that he believes Wilson has grown and changed. That change in Wilson was evident based on comments he made after the 37-15 win to Sunday Night Football sideline reporter Melissa Stark.  

"I think Russ is a little bit of a changed man," Acho said. "At the end of the game, I don't know if y'all saw Melissa Stark ask Russ, 'Hey, you had a sign-off in Seattle, right? Go Hawks. You had a sign-off in Denver, Let's Ride.' She said, 'What's your sign-off now, Russ?' Like setting him up. She set him up to fall to the public. He simply said, 'Hey, Imma wait on that.' She said, 'Wait? Wait for what?' He said, 'Imma wait on that.' Old Russ might have done something that the world would have perceived as cocky. He didn't say nothing. He just said, 'I'm gonna wait on that.'"

Other than Chase Daniel, the co-hosts of The Facility have been high on Wilson all season. They have said numerous times that they believed Tomlin would start Wilson at some point, if for no other reason than to see how much he has left in the tank. 

LeSean McCoy even showed up in the studio to film the show wearing black and gold to brag about how he always believed Wilson was the answer. McCoy agreed with Acho and said that he felt like they said a different and better version of Wilson than they had in Denver, and he believes that the team is "rocking with him."

Did The Steelers Give Russell Wilson A Longer Leash?

One of the major criticisms of Fields was that he either couldn't get the ball down field to receivers or wasn't allowed to take those shots. The narrative throughout the season has been that Fields was told to minimize risks with the ball. He wasn't to take dangerous shots and instead follow a conservative game plan. Fields was known for turnovers when he was with the Chicago Bears, so, understandably, the Steelers would want to operate cautiously. 

This leads many to believe that Tomlin put a lot of faith in Wilson's extensive NFL experience. According to Daniel, a former NFL quarterback, Wilson was allowed more freedom than Fields was. Daniel said during the show that he heard a lot of "run, pass, kill" with Wilson, which wasn't there when Fields was under center. 

He said that meant two or three plays were called in the huddle, and Wilson was allowed to read the defense and decide. He said this isn't surprising. Wilson has seen nearly everything that can be seen from a defense and has shown the ability to make sound decisions. 

Do you agree that Wilson has changed from when he was with the Broncos? Click to comment below. 

#SteelerNation