The Pittsburgh Steelers crashed out of the 2024 NFL season after a Wild Card Round loss against the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday. Their quarterback situation has grabbed their limelight as they enter the offseason.
Russell Wilson started ahead of Justin Fields in Week 7 despite the latter providing a great start to the Steelers. However, both have an uncertain future after the Ravens’ elimination. Amid various speculations, the Steelers have made a surprise QB signing.
Pittsburgh Steelers Sign QB Skylar Thompson
The Steelers have made their first acquisition within a week after entering the offseason. Pittsburgh has signed former Miami Dolphins quarterback Skylar Thompson as per the player’s agent, Sports Trust Advisors.
Signed, sealed & delivered! ✍🏼@skylarjthompson to the @steelers #LegendsLiveHere pic.twitter.com/0Jbbt6qeU8
— SportsTrust Advisors (@_SportsTrust) January 14, 2025
The Dolphins drafted Thompson as the 247th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. His performance in the preseason earned him a spot on the active roster. In his rookie year, Thompson made his debut in Week 5 against the New York Jets.
Thompson earned the QB1 mantle in Week 6 as both Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater were sidelined but suffered a blow on his finger. He later helped the Dolphins secure a playoff spot in the season finale.
The 27-year-old made his playoff debut in just his third game with the Dolphins. With Tagovailoa out, Thompson started the game as the Dolphins’ primary quarterback. Despite throwing for 220 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions, the Dolphins took a blow with a 34-31 loss against the Buffalo Bills.
Thompson did not suit up in any of the games in the upcoming season. In 2024, he played a total of three games, starting only one before getting waived by the franchise. However, the Dolphins added him back to the practice squad a few days later.
On Tuesday, Jan. 14, Thompson’s agent reported that the player would don the Steelers’ colors next season.
Pittsburgh’s Quarterback Situation
After deploying some of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL in the post-Ben Roethlisberger era, the Steelers completely revamped its QB room this past offseason. All three quarterbacks to make starts last season (Kenny Pickett, Mitchell Trubisky, and Mason Rudolph) were replaced by Fields and Wilson (with Kyle Allen as the QB3).
The two quarterbacks had a legitimate competition throughout training camp, with Wilson being named the starter in late August. Unfortunately, Wilson aggravated a calf injury that he suffered early in training camp, and it lingered longer than expected.
The Steelers were a bit of an enigma coming out of training camp. Stuck in what was supposed to be a loaded AFC North, few pundits picked them to make the postseason. Yet, the team jumped out to an 8-2 start, largely on the back of their quarterback play, then weathered a four-game losing skid to end the year.
Wilson started at QB when the Steelers took on the Ravens in their playoff game, but it wasn’t his team to start the season. Fields guided the Steelers to an 18-10 come-from-behind win over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1, showing off his arm and legs while igniting a quarterback controversy in Pittsburgh.
Fields led the Steelers to a 4-2 start, throwing for five touchdowns, running for five more, and turning the ball over just twice. The offense was by no means prolific, but Fields certainly played well enough to keep the starting job. Yet, the moment Wilson’s calf injury finally healed up in Week 7, head coach Mike Tomlin benched Fields.
The Steelers went 6-5 with Wilson running the huddle. They averaged 23.3 points per game under the eight-time Pro Bowler’s watch compared to 20.6 points per game under Fields — though the offense stagnated down the stretch and saw Pittsburgh end the year on a four-game losing skid.
Fields is far and away the more dynamic runner of the two quarterbacks, slashing and darting like a running back when he escapes the pocket. However, Wilson has a bigger and more accurate arm, turning star receiver George Pickens into a household name after taking the reins.
This season, Wilson threw for 2,482 yards, 16 touchdowns, and five interceptions while rushing for 155 yards and two scores. Wilson had a 2024 grade of 75.3 (C), 17th in the NFL, according to PFN’s QB+ metric. While Wilson was the starter since Week 7, Fields continued to play a bit in certain packages.
In the Wild Card Clash with the Ravens, Wilson completed 20 of 29 passes for 270 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Meanwhile, Fields barely played.
Wilson accepted a bargain contract (one-year, $1.21 million deal) that makes him one of the NFL’s lowest-paid quarterbacks in terms of annual average salary (not counting the $37.790 million he’s earning from Denver). His deal also contained a full no-trade clause.
Wilson’s salary with the Steelers ranked 64th among quarterbacks this season. In fact, he is the third-highest-paid quarterback on his team, as his salary is lower than Fields’ ($3,233,448) and Allen’s ($1,383,834). Now, after playing better during the 2024 season, Wilson will be an unrestricted free agent.
Meanwhile, Fields’ base salary is $1,616,724 with a roster bonus of $1,616,724, so his cap hit for this season is $3,233,448. The Steelers declined his fifth-year option (which would have paid him $25,664,000), which means he will also become a free agent this offseason.
It remains to be seen what the Steelers will do when both of their quarterbacks hit the open market this offseason. Will they re-sign Wilson or Fields? Could they move on from both? Is there a world where both signal-callers are back in Pittsburgh?