Analyst: What Russell Wilson must do to win Steelers QB job

Well-known ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes explained on the latest edition of the "RG3 And The Ones" podcast what Pittsburgh Steelers veteran Russell Wilson must do this summer to earn the starting quarterback job.

The former Seahawks and Broncos signal-caller will be vying with 2021 first-round draft pick Justin Fields during training camp.

"The two things I'd wanna see is, coming in this summer, preseason, whatnot, does it look like you can play faster? In a way that you can cut down on the time to throw, [cut down on] the sacks a little," Kimes said about Wilson, as shared by Josh Carney of Steelers Depot. "And then do you, as an organization with Arthur Smith as your offensive coordinator, are you willing to fully embrace his mobility? Because if not, don't even bother having a competition. Don't even bother having him run the offense." 

Before Wilson signed a team-friendly deal to join the Steelers, New England Patriots beat writer Chris Mason of MassLive said that game film showed the 35-year-old has "lost some of that escapability as his legs have started to go." According to StatMuse, no quarterback took more sacks over the past two seasons than Wilson (100). 

Fields (99) is second on the list. 

Steelers insiders and individuals associated with the organization such as head coach Mike Tomlin insist Wilson will enter training camp as the starter even though many believe it's only a matter of time before Fields makes Wilson surplus to requirements. Kimes declared that Tomlin has to hold a "real competition" between the two for the good of everyone involved. 

"I think for Fields, I'm a huge fan of his game and I think he's shown a lot of flashes that would still be interesting to me," Kimes told Griffin. "As a team, I think his ceiling is higher than Russ' at this point. Russ' floor is probably higher." 

Tomlin reportedly is as hyped today as he's been at this stage of an offseason in well over a decade, but DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Steelers on Thursday afternoon as +200 underdogs to qualify for the next postseason tournament regardless of who starts for the team at quarterback. 

Pittsburgh isn't married to either Wilson or Fields beyond 2024, so Tomlin only has to worry about picking who emerges this summer as the better option of the two ahead of Week 1.