The Pittsburgh Steelers are new to the Russell Wilson experience, and he has already got himself in hot water with some recent comments. In an interview with Essence magazine, he insinuated that he has opened a lot of doors for Black quarterbacks due to his early success in the 2010s. These comments were not taken well by a lot of people, as it seemed Wilson was discrediting the Black quarterbacks who came before him. Wilson has been called out a few times for his comments by people in the football world, most recently by Mark Schlereth.
Wilson saw a lot of success early on in his NFL career, winning Super Bowl XLVIII in just his second season, and returning to the Super Bowl the following year. He has failed to return to the big game since then, but has still been able to put together successful seasons. Schlereth began discussing Wilson on his podcast, "The Stinkin Truth Podcast With Mark Schlereth," where he clearly was upset with Wilson's comments, especially the portion where Wilson stated he created opportunities for guys like Patrick Mahomes.
"Let's not jump on the Patrick Mahomes bandwagon, that guy is as good as it gets. And by the way, those Super Bowls that you went to? You had a generational defense, the Legion of Boom, that became the model in the NFL at that time. We're going back to 2012? 2013? When they won that Super Bowl, after that, every team in the league started trying to play that match cover 3 that Seattle and Pete Carroll put together. It became the standard defense."
It was a team effort when Wilson won his first and only Super Bowl, but some would argue that he was not one of the best players on that team that led them to victory. The Seahawks had one of the best defenses in the league and Marshawn Lynch running the ball in his prime.
Wilson wasn't spectacular in 2013, but he didn't do anything to lose games for the Seahawks. They finished the regular season with a 13-3 record, while Wilson threw for 26 touchdowns and nine interceptions — just over 3,300 passing yards. Wilson was also a threat with his legs, as he ran for nearly 550 yards. Wilson didn't carry Seattle to a Super Bowl victory, but he also doesn't deserve to be dragged in the way he was by Schlereth. Schlereth continued to disrespect Wilson and his Super Bowl run from 2013.
"You had a generational defense, you had a run game with Marshawn Lynch in Beast Mode. You didn't have a cape on, you didn't sling a team on your back and carry them to the Promised Land. You were along for the ride to a degree. If we're going to be honest about history, let's be honest about the teams you went to the Super Bowl with."
Schlereth's comments aren't jaw dropping. It is pretty known that those Seahawks teams of the 2010s were loaded defensively, and they had one of the best running backs in the league in Lynch. Wilson was exactly what that team needed him to be, which helped them reach the levels of success that they did. Once the roster dwindled down, and Wilson was forced to play hero ball, they failed to reach the same level of success.
Steelers have a similar formula to 2013 Seahawks
The Seahawks team Wilson won a Super Bowl with was led by the defense, which is exactly how the Steelers will be in 2024. The emergence of Joey Porter Jr., and the addition of Patrick Queen, along with constantly effective stars like Minkah Fitzpatrick, TJ Watt, Cam Heyward and Alex Highsmith make Pittsburgh's defense one of the best in the league. The Steelers offense has some holes needing to be filled. The offensive line needs some work as well as the receiver position. Overall, however, the unit is in better shape than it was in 2023, which has them poised to be playing in the postseason.
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