Pittsburgh Steelers sign quarterback Russell Wilson then agree Kenny Pickett trade

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed former Super Bowl-winning quarterback Russell Wilson on a one-year contract.

The 35-year-old was a free agent as the Denver Broncos released him just two years after signing him in one of the most valuable trades in NFL history.

The Steelers then agreed to trade Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles.

“I was fortunate to have several teams call, but this is where I wanted to be,” said Wilson of Pittsburgh, who have won a joint-record six NFL titles.

“To be a Pittsburgh Steeler, to wear the black and gold – it’s a true honour. The tradition, the history. There’s six [Super Bowl] trophies in there. We’ve got to go get a seventh.”

In a 10-year stint with the Seattle Seahawks, Wilson won the Super Bowl against Denver in 2014 and is one of just five active QBs to have started and won the NFL’s championship game, the others being Patrick Mahomes, Matthew Stafford, Aaron Rodgers and Joe Flacco.

Denver traded two first-round draft picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-round pick and three players to Seattle in exchange for Wilson and a fourth-round pick before the start of the 2022 season. He then signed a five-year contract extension worth $245m, external to 2029.

Wilson was touted as the long-term successor to legendary quarterback Peyton Manning, who retired after the Broncos clinched their third Super Bowl in 2016, but he won just 11 of his 30 games with Denver.

He had two head coaches in two years with the Broncos, with rookie Nathaniel Hackett sacked late into his first season, while his successor Sean Payton benched him for the final two games of the 2023 season.

Wilson has 43,653 passing yards, 334 touchdowns and 106 interceptions across his 12-year career and was expected to compete with Kenny Pickett.

He had been Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback since they selected him in the first round of the 2022 draft, shortly after their two-time Super Bowl winner Ben Roethlisberger brought his 18-year career to a close.

However, after securing the Wilson deal, the Steelers agreed to trade the 25-year-old to the Eagles.

With so much of Wilson’s huge contract extension having been guaranteed ($165m), Denver will still pay most of his salary for the 2024 season, with Pittsburgh paying a fraction.

Phoebe Schecter, NFL pundit

Wilson really struggled the past two years with the Broncos. He did improve with Payton in his second year but it’s not the same old Russell Wilson.

They brought Payton in and, truthfully, he never really wanted Wilson. He wanted to find his players to bring in, so I think that was the biggest issue there.

This is almost a ‘no-brainer’ for the Steelers, paying that little money for a starting quarterback, for a veteran, who was in the league last year.