Russell Wilson joined his third team in as many years when he agreed to a deal with the New York Giants on Tuesday, but apparently the veteran did not want another change of scenery.
Wilson signed a 1-year deal with the Giants that is worth up to $21 million and includes $10.5 million guaranteed. While the contract suggests that New York intends to enter the 2025 season with Wilson as a starter, the 36-year-old quarterback may have preferred to have that job with another team — his old one.
According to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Wilson was hoping to remain with the Steelers right up until he decided to sign with the Giants.
Russell Wilson wanted to remain with the Steelers, right up till the end, before he agreed to a deal with the Giants, per sources.
— Gerry Dulac (@gerrydulac) March 26, 2025
That is hardly a surprise. The Giants are Wilson’s fourth team since 2021. He led Pittsburgh to the playoffs last season, and the Steelers made a huge offseason addition when they traded for DK Metcalf.
The Giants finished 3-14 last year, so they have a long way to go before they can be considered a playoff contender. Wilson would have had a better chance to win in Pittsburgh while also remaining in a place that had become at least somewhat familiar to him.
If Wilson truly did want to remain with the Steelers, that is likely a strong indicator that Pittsburgh is closing in on signing Aaron Rodgers. With Justin Fields having signed with the New York Jets, the logical backup plan in Pittsburgh behind Rodgers would have been to re-sign Wilson. Unless the Giants gave Wilson some sort of hard deadline, it seems likely that the Steelers informed the 10-time Pro Bowl quarterback they were going in another direction.
Giants fans do not exactly seem thrilled about the addition of Wilson. Perhaps the feeling is mutual on some level.
