Mike DeFabo, The Athletic Steelers Reporter

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Call 562-314-4603 for details. Hey, Mike, thank you for taking the time to hop on. Yeah, absolutely. Thank you so much for having me.

And like I've been telling everybody, Omar Khan is good for business. This team is not boring right now and there's plenty to talk about with the Steelers. Well, I know the fans can be quite fickle when it comes to how good the Steelers are or are not. Here in the offseason, I assume they're pretty thrilled with what has taken place over the past couple of days, right?

Yeah, absolutely, because if you look at the dynamic of this team last season, a defense that was top six in scoring basically lugged an anemic offense to the playoffs. And, you know, going into the season, there was definitely a situation where the Steelers entered a crossroads and they could have said, we're going to ride it out with Kenny Pickett in year three and give him the opportunity to prove he wasn't the problem. In his entire career, he played just one game without Matt Canada, the offensive coordinator. But instead, a franchise that's been known for patience, a franchise that's had just three head coaches since 1969 and historically does not fire assistant coaches in season.

They took a much more aggressive approach. They went out and they got Russell Wilson and then they subsequently went out and got Justin Fields. And the way I view the situation is, you know, of the available options right now, the Steelers have two of the best ones that were on the open market in terms of what they could do to upgrade. And I feel like both of these guys are better than anybody that had in the quarterback room last season. Well, Mike, you want to talk about the guy who was playing quarterback last year, at least until he got hurt, was Kenny Pickett. And now he is gone, traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. We heard the comments from him earlier today that he feels he handled things the right way.

What's the latest on why he decided the bail? Was there miscommunication? Is that your understanding? You know, basically the way that I understand things is that Kenny felt when Mike Thomas stood up there at the end of season press conference and said, Kenny will be QB one next season, but there'll be competition. He imagined there would be competition. Now, there's a difference between competition and replacing Kenny Pickett. And when you get out, go out and you get a guy who's a nine time Pro Bowler, a guy who's a Super Bowl champion like Russell Wilson, that's going to clearly be your starter. So I think he felt like, you know, he wasn't given a fair opportunity here.

He didn't like the way that things were unfolding. And truthfully, I feel maybe a change of scenery is best for both people because, you know, even though it felt like a feel good story here, Kenny Pickett played at Pitt. He comes with a prepackaged fan base. He gets to play in the same stadium where he starred and rewrote all of Dan Marino's records in college.

But also with that comes expectation. And not only was he trying to replace a Hall of Famer like Ben Roethlisberger, he had all that pressure based on everything that came from college. So I think maybe getting out of Pittsburgh for him is the best move. And for the Steelers, they've upgraded their quarterback room. Swinging that trade for Justin Fields was so significant. So I feel like it worked out for all parties involved.

Mike DeFabo is here with us on CBS Sports Radio covers the Steelers for the athletic. Hey, good for Kenny Pickett, except for he's probably not going to play too much unless Mr. Hertz goes down with an injury. So it sucks for him. Yeah, exactly. I mean, he's not in too different of a situation than he would have been here. And I think some people in Pittsburgh are irked by the way he handled the situation. I mean, fans, because, you know, if you're a real competitor and they bring somebody in, you know, there's one way to approach that. And that would be saying, I'm going to go and I'm going to put my head down and I'm going to work and I'm going to prove to you that you made the wrong decision.

I'm going to stay ready. Instead of doing that, he looked for another opportunity. So definitely some fans here in Pittsburgh that left the sour taste in their mouth the way the things ended. Well, let's talk about the man who's coming in, Mike. You think about Justin Fields. I assume he's going to he's going to see some action, even if it's some some gadget plays, a little trickery here and there. What should Steelers fans expect for Justin Fields? Yes, as it stands right now, the expectation is Russell Wilson will be the starter and then Justin Fields will serve as the backup. But, you know, Russell Wilson is set to turn 36 in November.

And for me, I felt the biggest risk in bringing in Russell Wilson was it could be seen as a stopgap solution for a team that needs a long term answer. Well, by bringing in a young guy who was at one time the 11th overall pick and has tangible reasons why, you know, he's got a great arm. He has incredible mobility.

When he's on the field, he might be the best athlete out there. So you have a guy that you can develop. And ironically, on draft night, Justin Fields said that he models his game after Russell Wilson.

So he now gets an opportunity to learn from a guy. And the biggest, I guess, criticism of Justin Field's game and problem with his game is he turns the ball over a lot. That's something that Russell Wilson has found a way to minimize. So maybe learning from him helps.

The other thing that you're mentioning, I completely agree. I think there'll be opportunities to play him this season. The Steelers play the Ravens twice a year. And what that means is twice a year as the practice squad quarterback or the scout team quarterback, Justin Fields is going to be mimicking Lamar Jackson.

So there's no reason they couldn't couldn't install a package of plays. Certain situations when you bring Justin Fields into the game, you tap into that athleticism without putting the whole thing on his plate and making him the starter. Mike, the fable covers the Steelers for the athletic. When you think about the salaries for both Justin Fields and Russell Wilson for this season, which I think is at five million or just below it. What are the salary implications for this season, but then also potentially in the future for both dudes? Yeah, so in the short term, one great thing about what the Steelers have done is they have not committed a lot of draft picks or salary cap space to that position. And you think about how many teams throw massive amounts of money or huge number of draft picks towards this position. So the Steelers can continue to round out their roster in this way. Now, the complicating factor is that there's a 50 year decision due on Justin Fields in May, and that number comes in at about twenty three point eight million dollars.

But what the Steelers can do, I think, is they can be creative. You could decline that 50 year option, rip up the contract, drop an extension right now. And I think that that would be the prudent approach. You spend some draft capital, not a lot in the conditional six round pick to acquire him. You'd like to keep him beyond just this season.

So I think that passing up the expensive 50 year option in kind of a long term deal would be the prudent move. And I think Justin Fields could be down for it because the way it sounds and the way it's been reported, there were a couple of teams interested in him and he kind of handpicked the Steelers as his destination. So this is a place that he wants to be, at least in the short term.

And it's up to Omar Khan to sell him on the fact that long term, this is also a good place to be. Hey, Mike, when you talk about long term, that's that's for Justin Fields. When you think about long term for Russell Wilson, this is a one year deal for him. But we have heard that at the end of the season, pending what has taken place, that the Steelers may say, hey, we want to work out a longer term contract with you.

Is there a situation where they keep both on? Yeah, it's going to be a really interesting dynamic there with both of these guys. So Russell Wilson said when he was introduced to the Pittsburgh media that he hopes to play five to seven more years. And so this is really it's kind of a prove it here for Russell Wilson.

The league is kind of down on him. It wasn't like he had a lot of teams beating down his door, offering him a two or three year contract to come in and be their starting quarterback. The Steelers were one of the few and they presented him with a great opportunity. So, you know, I think the Steelers have options if they can get field under contract before the year and after the season, fully evaluate their their situation.

Then the ball is in their court and they can make the decision which of these two or maybe both. They want to keep going forward. And Mike, the fable is here with us, the chair, our sport, we show on CBS Sports Radio. That's that's the quarterback. And obviously we know the quarterback is the most important position on the team. What are the expectations for the Steelers? What else do they need to do here throughout the course of the off season, through the draft, through training camp? What are some of the strengths and maybe more importantly, what are some of the weaknesses and some of the holes that they still need to fill? Well, as I mentioned earlier, they finished top six in scoring defense last year, and that's a pretty complete unit when you've got Minka Fitzpatrick and TJ Watt and Cam Hayward.

And then one of the biggest moves that Omar Khan made was he went out and he acquired Patrick Queen. And that addresses the inside linebacker position that has been a revolving door since Ryan Chazier suffered his tragic career ending injury. So I feel like on defense, they're pretty well set. They can continue to fortify some positions.

But the real question is on offense. And the two glaring holes right now are they they cut their starting center, Mason Cole. And so they need to get a center, whether that's in the draft or in the second wave of free agency. And then after trading Deontay Johnson, there's a desperate need for a second wide receiver. And they're planning to have Mike Williams, former charger, come in and they're going to visit with him.

There's also some mutual interest with Tyler Boyd, who went to Pitt and there's a local guy here. So those are two guys definitely to keep your eyes on for the Steelers and two positions offensively in wide receiver and center that they definitely are going to address going forward. Mike, the fable covers the Steelers for the athletic. And you mentioned Patrick Queen and one of the reasons he made very clear that he decided to join the enemy and become a member of the Steelers is because of Mike Tomlin. I mean, is the city going to give Mike Tomlin a break this season? I mean, are they going to blame Russell Wilson?

No, I feel you on that. They're pretty hard on Mike Tomlin around these parts, but I completely agree with you. Like the way Patrick Queen explained it when he was a rookie or maybe in the second season, Mike Tomlin was talking stuff to him on the sideline and saying, you're not a raven yet because you haven't beat the Steelers.

You're not a raven. And Patrick Queen said, I wanted to fight him right then and there. And so to go from wanting to fight this guy to wanting to play for him, that just shows the respect that Mike Tomlin has for the players have from Mike Tomlin around the league. And that's one new dynamic, I think, here is the Steelers traditionally in free agency in the past took a very conservative approach.

And you might see maybe on week two, they would get some kind of veteran depth guide, but not really a splashy player. But now that they're actually being active and they're actively trying to go out and get guys, Mike Tomlin can be that recruiter. And I guarantee you, when Mike Williams comes in this week and Mike Tomlin sits down with him and has a conversation, Mike Williams was going to have so much respect for Mike Tomlin.

That's going to hold some weight when he makes his final decision. And I think that that played a big factor in both quarterbacks. Russell Wilson, I think, wanted to play for a guy like Mike Tomlin. I think that Justin Fields has a great relationship with Mike Tomlin and wants to play for him.

So you're seeing the coach definitely have an impact not only within the season, but when it comes to roster building and these connections that he's able to form. Mike, when you think about what the rest of the division looks like, we see the Ravens and we know about the Bengals and you got the Browns there as well getting some insurance by bringing in Jameis Winston behind Deshaun Watson. What do you expect from this this division next year? It's always a dogfight.

That's exactly the word that I would use to describe it. I mean, this division, these teams know each other so well. They play a certain brand of football here in the AFC North.

And I think that they they've all built their team somewhat similarly. I mean, I think there's so much hatred in such a bitter rivalry with the Ravens, but at the same time, there's so much respect because there's such mere images of each other. So, I mean, I think that it's going to be another season, just like last year, where you've got multiple teams fighting to the end. They're going to be in that in the hunt graphic. And I wouldn't be surprised to see three teams from the AFC North make the playoffs this year. Hey, well, we're going to find out sooner than later. It's certainly going to be a fun season for the Steelers now that they got they got a quarterback in Russell Wilson.

And so now is I mean, he's been pretty durable. Are there any concerns? I mean, the city has to be jumping and hopping, like we said, is there any concern? Well, I think the major concern you would have is that it wasn't like a bunch of teams were trying to get these guys.

You got them for very, very little for a reason because the rest of the league isn't very high on these guys. And there are questions about what Russell Wilson is as a player and also some of the inner locker room dynamics and how that unfolds. There's questions about Justin Fields and his turnovers. And if if he's in a better situation, can he develop into the quarterback that everyone thought he once was? So there's definitely reason for for a bit of cautious optimism. And I think that the optimism comes in the fact that they're not expecting a lot out of this quarterback position.

They've got a great defense. They're going to install a very run heavy scheme with Arthur Smith. They're planning to build the trenches and bolster that offensive line. So if Russell Wilson, who has at times been criticized as being a glorified game manager, if he comes in and he's a glorified game manager here, that might be exactly what this team needs. All he needs to do is put the ball where it needs to be, orchestrate this this run heavy offense, and then bring that trademark deep ball and unlock George Pickens, who's been painfully underutilized. If he can bring that deep ball, that's really going to be the thing that sets this offense apart and helps get this team that next level. Well, Mike, have fun with the the Russell Wilson press conferences throughout the year, OK? Yeah, definitely. I feel like I definitely have more motivational quotes than like my my middle school, high school health class.

It's like the same kind of vibes when he's talking, but he does his thing. Yeah, no doubt about it. Put him in a book, steal him and sell him. You got that advice from me. Where can people follow you and all of your great work keeping up with these Steelers? Yeah, absolutely. I keep it easy.

You can follow me on Twitter at Mike DeFabo. Old Man Winter here. If I had it my way, it would stay winter all year long. Short days, wind chill, black ice and a good polar vortex.

Heaven. Wait, is it getting warm in here? Your cold snap is over, Old Man Winter. Spring has arrived.

Spring. Spring is here, which means it's the perfect time to get away in the Hyundai you've always wanted. Visit the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event, where you can get great deals on all of our award winning Hyundai models like the tech filled Tucson and Kona, as well as the spacious Palisade. Enjoy wherever you go with the peace of mind that comes with America's best warranty and three years or thirty six thousand miles of complimentary maintenance.

But hurry in. These deals won't last. Add more joy to your journey at the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event. Now get zero percent APR or up to fifteen hundred bonus cash on the Hyundai Tucson. Now during the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event. Offers end soon.

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