Analyst shares bold take about what Steelers can do with Russell Wilson

Retired quarterback and current ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky defended current Denver Broncos signal-caller Russell Wilson ahead of Wilson's expected move to the Pittsburgh Steelers which is slated to become official after the new league year begins this Wednesday. 

"If Russell plays the way for the Steelers next year as he did the past year for the Broncos, they will win a playoff game," Orlovsky said about Wilson during Monday's edition of the ESPN "Get Up" program, as shared by Joe Clark of Steelers Depot. 

Wilson joined Denver from the Seattle Seahawks via a trade in March 2022 but then disappointed many with his on-the-field performances during his first campaign with the Broncos. He also allegedly became unpopular among some within the locker room before Sean Payton was hired as Denver's head coach in February 2023. 

According to ESPN stats, Wilson finished this past regular season ranked 21st in the NFL among qualified players with a 50.7 adjusted QBR and eighth with a 98.0 passer rating. He was ninth with 26 touchdown passes, and he tossed eight interceptions over 15 games. 

Orlovsky compared Wilson joining the Steelers to how Ryan Tannehill went from the Miami Dolphins to the Tennessee Titans after the 2018 season. In their first campaign together, Tannehill and the Titans completed a journey all the way to the AFC Championship Game, where Tennessee lost to the Kansas City Chiefs. Orlovsky insisted that Tannehill was "a top-five quarterback no matter how you look at it when it comes to stats and production-wise" playing under then-offensive coordinator Arthur Smith during the 2019 and 2020 seasons.

"And we know Russell Wilson in many ways is a better player than Ryan Tannehill," Orlovsky continued. "This is a great move for both parties." 

The Broncos allowed Wilson to speak with teams such as the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders last week, and he ultimately agreed to a team-friendly deal with a Pittsburgh club that snuck into the most recent postseason tournament thanks largely to backup signal-caller Mason Rudolph. Ahead of the weekend, New England Patriots beat reporter Chris Mason of MassLive wrote that he thought Wilson "isn’t even an average quarterback at this point." Former Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. later seemingly ripped Wilson via X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, on Saturday. 

"We talk about Russell Wilson like he’s a castoff," Orlovsky added during the show segment, per Ben Axelrod of Awful Announcing. "I don’t understand it. Maybe you don’t like the personality. Maybe you don’t. And maybe you don’t like the noise he brings with him or the persona. That’s your opinion. Have at it. But we have to be fair about what the player is or who he is on the field. The last four years he has like 110 touchdowns and 30 picks. The conversation around him has become stupid."

Wilson made it known this past September he kept receipts regarding what was said about him during and after the 2022 season. One wonders if he'll make a similar statement at some point after he competes with 2022 first-round draft pick Kenny Pickett for the Pittsburgh starting job this coming summer.