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Brooke Pryor, ESPN Staff WriterOct 17, 2024, 04:58 PM ET
- Previously covered the Kansas City Chiefs for the Kansas City Star and Oklahoma University for the Oklahoman.
PITTSBURGH — Quarterback Russell Wilson said he’s “preparing to get ready to go” as the Steelers‘ starter against the New York Jets on Sunday night.
Coach Mike Tomlin has declined to name a starter, but Wilson, who aggravated a training camp calf injury in early September, has taken first-team reps in practice and led the quarterback rotation in individual drills this week. He was active for the first time this season against Las Vegas last week, but did not play.
“I’m more myself physically, being up and running and all that stuff, so I feel good,” Wilson said Thursday. “… You want to be able to move around, and obviously I’ve never really missed games before, so that’s been a challenge in itself.
“It’s been disappointing, but also I’ve grown a lot, too. I think that you realize that you just continue to love every day. You continue to find ways to lead, you continue to find ways to just embrace the challenges, the hard stuff, the obstacles in our way and everything else. And you look forward to the journey.”
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The Steelers went 4-2 with Justin Fields as the starter, but Wilson still was listed as QB1 on the depth chart during those six weeks.
“I think Justin’s done a great job,” Wilson said. “I think he’s a tremendous quarterback. I’ve fought against him over the years. He’s a tremendous football player, a great teammate and all that. And I think more importantly for us is we continue to go on through the season. We want to get better and continue to grow. That’s always the goal every year.”
Asked about any potential awkwardness with a quarterback change, Wilson pointed to his time in Denver, when he was benched for Jarrett Stidham late in the season.
“I went through a challenge last year. Kind of unexpected along the way, and that was challenging itself,” Wilson said. “But at the same time, you lead with love. You lead with love for the game, love for your teammates, just love for what you get to do every day.
“… I came here for one reason. That was to win the Super Bowl. That was to go as far as we could and see where we could go with it. I think we have that opportunity, but we got to do the work.”
