Steelers QB could be traded

The Pittsburgh Steelers made a change at quarterback during the 2024 NFL season, leaving Kenny Pickett just two years after the team selected him in the first round. In came the duo of Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, each looking to prove themselves after a change of scenery.

Wilson was originally expected to be Pittsburgh’s starter. He signed with the Steelers before Mike Tomlin’s team traded for Fields, and Tomlin made a point throughout the offseason that Wilson was the team’s best quarterback.

However, a calf injury on the eve of the season threw a spanner in the works of those plans. Wilson was out in Week 1 and Fields got the start. He has led the Steelers to a 3-1 record in their first four games, and it appears the team will continue to rely on the 2021 first-round pick as long as it keeps winning.

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That leaves Wilson, 35, in a tough spot. He came to Pittsburgh hoping to repair his image after two disastrous seasons with the Denver Broncos. That opportunity may never arise if Fields continues to play well and keeps the Steelers in the playoff hunt.

The good news for Wilson? It won’t be difficult for him to get a change of scenery again if he and the Steelers see fit. The veteran starter is playing on a very cheap contract, which could make him an intriguing trade chip for quarterback-needy teams.

Here’s what you need to know about Wilson’s contract and where it fits into the larger NFL landscape.

Russell Wilson contract details

Wilson signed a one-year contract with the Steelers worth $1.21 million during the 2024 NFL season. That represented the smallest possible salary Wilson could earn, as $1.21 million is the veteran minimum for the NFL season of 2024.

Wilson’s deal with the Steelers was seen as a bargain, and for good reason. It made him one of the lowest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL and one of the lowest-paid projected starters.

While Wilson’s contract may have looked small at first glance, he makes a lot more than it seems. That’s thanks to his five-year contract extension with the Broncos ahead of the 2022 NFL season.

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How much will Russell Wilson earn in 2024?

Wilson is making $39 million for the 2024 NFL season. The Broncos are responsible for the majority of that amount because of the $242.5 million contract they signed with him in 2022.

Wilson’s contract included $124 million in guarantees. Denver had already paid $85 million of it before the 2024 NFL season, but they still had to pay the 35-year-old the rest of the guarantees as part of his release.

However, Denver’s deal with Wilson included therein offset the language. That meant if he signed a contract with another team, his 2024 salary would be deducted from the amount Denver owed him.

That incentivized Wilson to make the cheapest deal possible, as it gave his new club the flexibility needed to upgrade the rest of the roster while bringing the veteran quarterback on board. That’s why he took the Steelers’ $1.21 million offer and left the Broncos to pay the remaining $37.79 million.

Wilson’s decision caused another interesting wrinkle. His contract is also very easy to trade and could easily be picked up by just about any NFL team.

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If Wilson is traded, any NFL team that acquires him would owe him a prorated version of his $1.21 million salary for 2024. That amount easily fits into the available salary cap space of almost every NFL team.

According to OverTheCap.com, the Carolina Panthers are the only NFL team that would not currently have the salary cap space needed to trade for Wilson.

That doesn’t necessarily mean teams will line up to acquire Wilson if the Steelers make him available. However, as NFL fans saw at the 2023 NFL trade deadline when the Minnesota Vikings traded for Joshua Dobbs, NFL teams are willing to take fliers on veteran quarterbacks, especially when their starters get hurt.

If another starting quarterback gets injured or a team decides it needs a veteran presence who can be a solid fill-in starter, acquiring Wilson would be a cheap option not only from a draft capital perspective, but also from a financial perspective.

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Cheapest NFL QB Contracts

Wilson’s contract is cheap, but other quarterbacks on NFL rosters make less than him.

Sam Hartman is the lowest-paid NFL quarterback on a team’s 53-man roster, according to OverTheCap.com. The Washington Commanders starting quarterback will make just $795,000 in 2024 after signing with the team as an undrafted free agent.

Below are the 10 lowest-paid quarterbacks currently on active rosters, based on the average annual value (AAV) of their contracts: