The Pittsburgh Steelers have been a magnet for all kinds of criticism as of late, and that ride is not ending any time soon. The Russell Wilson signing has been included in this and has had some mixed reviews from the sports world. Wilson himself has been blasted for some of the things that he has said recently. This time, instead of keeping quiet like he normally does, he went out onto X to defend himself with "full context."
While appearing on the "Nightcap" podcast, Shannon Sharpe read some comments that Wilson made from a recent interview. Wilson was speaking about how he believed to be "opening doors" for African American quarterbacks in the NFL. Sharpe took offense to those comments and went off on him during the show.
"So, what role did Doug Williams play? The first African American quarterback to actually get to and win the Super Bowl and win MVP. So, what about Shack Harris? What about Joe Gilliam? So, what did Marlin Briscoe do? Jack Harry? Steve McNair? They opened no doors? Donovan McNabb, Michael Vick? It was you?... I just don’t know what he was hoping to accomplish by saying what he said. He opened doors? Huh? No, it was the guys who came before you who had success who opened doors for you."
There were definitely plenty of successful African American quarterbacks in the NFL before Wilson was drafted, including Doug Williams, who became the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl, as well as MVP. Sharpe even mentioned that the first player to do something is the one that gets the credit, as opposed to the second one.
Wilson made a post on X to defend himself from those comments, claiming that Sharpe took his quotes out of context. In his post, he highlighted the parts in the transcript where he praised the quarterbacks that played before he did.
Wilson also brought up the new generation of quarterbacks that are making a name for themselves. Wilson claimed that he opened up doors for them to be in this position. He specifically dropped Patrick Mahomes' name in the interview, since he is leading the newest dynasty with the Kansas City Chiefs. Wilson hopes to see more African American quarterbacks win championships, like him and Mahomes have done.
Steelers Hope Wilson Can Be The Next Super Bowl Champion
Wilson's enthusiasm for minority quarterbacks is great, but they did not sign him to have him cheer on his opponents. Mike Tomlin named Wilson as the starting quarterback for training camp due to the belief that he is currently their best option at finally ending their playoff win drought. Anything less than those expectations will most likely result in Wilson going back into free agency in 2025.
Wilson's job is not secure either. The Steelers also traded for Justin Fields to bring in some young competition, and they will likely end up competing with each other throughout the entire season. If Wilson spends too much time cheering on other quarterbacks during the season, he could easily lose the starting role. The Steelers have been growing impatient, and Wilson needs to show off what he can do on the field as soon as possible.
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