While there may be a fine line between practice squad players and starters, there appears to be an enormous gap in the opinions of the former and current quarterbacks for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Steelers QB Russell Wilson appears to hold a completely opposite stance to that of former legendary Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger regarding WR George Pickens’ less-than-ideal participation on Week 12’s Hail Mary play, which led to Pittsburgh’s third loss of the season.
While Roethlisberger pulled no punches on his podcast, stating that Pickens drove him “bonkers” during the game, Wilson defended his teammate and number one WR during Wednesday’s media availability. As shown by ESPN reporter Brooke Pryor on social media, Wilson credited the Cleveland Browns’ defense rather than placing any fault on Pickens:
Russell Wilson on what happened between George Pickens and Browns CB Greg Newsome during the Hail Mary:
“George is always trying to make a play, obviously. … He was trying to get to the spot where I threw it to, and he got carried out the end zone on that, unfortunately.” pic.twitter.com/N93uSZhCS9
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) November 27, 2024
This could be Wilson trying his best to keep his receiver in good spirits, but it is truly inspiring to see the quarterback display impressive qualities of leadership and poise after such a heartbreaking play and loss in Week 12.
