The early offseason is a time for fans to get some clarity on what happened at the end of the NFL season. That’s particularly useful for some players and teams such as Russell Wilson and the Pittsburgh Steelers, who started 10-3 but lost their last five games including the playoffs.
But after Feb. 5, things are more muffled around the Wilson and the Steelers than clear.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac reported on Feb. 4 that offensive coordinator Arthur Smith took away Wilson’s ability to change plays at the line of scrimmage late in the season. That seemingly explained the difference in game plans between Pittsburgh’s first matchup versus the Cincinnati Bengals on Dec. 1 and in the rematch on Jan. 4.
But while appearing on 93.7 The Fan’s PM Show with Andrew Fillipponi and Chris Mueller, CBS Sports’ Aditi Kinkhabwala strongly refuted Dulac’s report, calling it “patently false” and “completely inaccurate.”
“Maybe that’s not a fair way to say it. It is one-sided. It isn’t complete,” Kinkhabwala concluded. “This is very clearly coming from one side.
“I’ll say this straight up: Russell Wilson is a very, very nice human being, and none of this is meant to be malicious in any way, but he’s clearly looking for another contract.”
Gerry Dulac’s Original Report on Russell Wilson, Arthur Smith
It’s important to note that Dulac wasn’t the first to report an issue between Wilson and Smith. Steelers insider Mark Kaboly reported on Jan. 14 there was friction between Wilson and Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.
“Despite Wilson and Smith spending countless hours together after the typical workday watching film and publicly joking about it, a team source recently said that Wilson and Smith did not have a very good working relationship but fought through their differences as best they could,” wrote Kaboly.
Kaboly added that Smith preferred Justin Fields behind center. But other than that, Kaboly didn’t have any more details on what led to disagreements between Smith and Wilson.
But Dulac provided more context on Feb. 4.
“According to several sources, Smith did not want Wilson changing plays at the line of scrimmage, like he did in Cincinnati, and deviating from the game plan,” Dulac wrote. “Wilson’s desire to attack with the pass and throw down the field clashed with Smith’s run-first mentality, causing philosophical friction between the two.”
Against the Bengals on Dec. 1, Wilson attempted 38 passes, throwing for 414 yards and three touchdowns, leading the offense to a season-high 44 points.
In the rematch a month later, the Steelers had a completely different game plan. Pittsburgh ran the ball 23 times versus only 31 passes. On five of their first six first downs in the contest, the Steelers ran the ball even though Wilson passing on first down worked very effectively on Dec. 1.
The Steelers lost the game 19-17.
Kinkhabwala Claims Dulac’s Report From Wilson Camp
Kinkhabwala didn’t offer another story to either support her rebuttal of Dulac’s report or to give additional context. But she strongly argued against the idea the Steelers removed Wilson’s ability to audible because of the possibility of it being a narrative the quarterback’s camp is trying to create to help his free agent market.
“In talking to coaches and general managers around the league, there’s just not a market for his services right now,” Kinkhabwala reported. “So, when I read something like that, I read this as a desperate ploy to explain why the season ended the way that it did, to assign blame elsewhere, and to perhaps try to create a market here in Pittsburgh for his services.
“The truth is, it’s just not true.”
Wilson’s camp creating a narrative that he wasn’t to blame for the team’s offensive issues late in the season could put a wedge between the quarterback and the Steelers coaching staff. But maybe the quarterback is trying to win over public appeal in the Pittsburgh fan base as much as create a market for himself in free agency.
That, of course, is assuming Kinkbahwala’s refute is more correct than Dulac’s report.
With free agency still five weeks away, this likely won’t be the last time an insider weighs in on Wilson’s relationship with Smith and the Steelers.
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