CBS Sports believes Russell Wilson should be done in Pittsburgh: ‘Steelers need an upgrade’

From Weeks 7 to 14, things seemed to be going pretty well for the Pittsburgh Steelers in their partnership with QB Russell Wilson as they progressed well.

In the last few weeks, however, the sea has become rougher. The Steelers are in the midst of a three-game losing streak, Wilson is turning the football over at an alarming rate and isn’t exactly elevating the offense down the stretch.

That was largely the case again on Christmas Day against the Kansas City Chiefs, as Wilson had a killer red zone interception and really couldn’t do much in the 29-10 loss. Granted, the interception may have had more to do with George Pickens not running his route, and the lack of a passing play was partly due to the defense collapsing too quickly.

But to Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports, the Steelers’ three-game losing streak and struggles on offense indicate that Wilson should be done in Pittsburgh.

“The Steelers played three games in 11 days, all against teams with more than 10 wins. The offensive numbers weren’t good and neither was Wilson. “Pittsburgh has averaged just 280.7 yards per game and 13.0 offensive points per game over the last three games, all with Wilson at quarterback,” Kerr wrote, according to cbssports.com. “Wilson completed just 64.1% of his passes for 550 yards, with three touchdowns, two interceptions and an 82.2 passer rating. The Steelers quarterback also has 10 sacks and has just a 73.3 passer rating when facing the blitz during the skid.

“Is Wilson good enough to start? Yes, but the Steelers need an upgrade at quarterback if they want to compete for the Super Bowl. Pittsburgh is not a Super Bowl contender with Wilson given how the last three weeks have unfolded.”

The three-game losing streak was pretty ugly, as was the offensive performance. It’s not all Wilson’s fault, however.

Yes, his turnovers like the fumble inside the 5-yard line against Baltimore, the pick-six to limit that loss, and the interception in the red zone on Christmas Day were very bad. But he made some plays in the passing game without George Pickens, but it wasn’t enough.

He also took too many sacks in recent weeks and held the football behind an offensive line that had a hard time defending against some great defensive fronts. Things are going badly for the Steelers at the moment, even though Wilson says he has a lot of faith in them to get it done.

But CBS Sports doesn’t have much confidence that Wilson is the right man for the Steelers at QB going forward. There’s a good chance the Steelers will re-sign Wilson before he hits free agency in March, securing the quarterback who has given the Steelers a significant boost in their passing game since entering the starting lineup.

The good from earlier in the season cannot be forgotten, but the poor play of the last few weeks cannot be written off either, leading to a fascinating discussion that will take place in the offseason.