Steelers use postgame victory celebration as prop for Russell Wilson to get back at the Broncos
The Pittsburgh Steelers went out west and took a W in the Denver Broncos home on Sunday. Justin Fields was the man at the helm despite the highly anticipated return of Russell Wilson. On top of his statement that the team and more specifically the offense would need to be better going forward, Fields mentioned […]
The Pittsburgh Steelers went out west and took a W in the Denver Broncos home on Sunday.
Justin Fields was the man at the helm despite the highly anticipated return of Russell Wilson.
On top of his statement that the team and more specifically the offense would need to be better going forward, Fields mentioned that the team wanted to get this one for Wilson, and they gifted him with a special game ball upon completion of the mission:
Russell Wilson receives "Petty Game Ball"
"Yeah, I mean, I think we all know Russ got kind of did dirty last year," Fields told the media after the game. "I know he wished he could have played today in this game, but it's awesome getting the win for him. He got a petty game ball, so it's great getting a dub for Russ for sure."
There are a few things to unpack here. For one, the Steelers and Mike Tomlin are far from unfamiliar with being petty or giving out game balls. Corliss Waitman, the team's new punter who once played for Denver also received a game ball, something coach Tomlin has done for players after winning "revenge games" in the past.
The "pettiness" behind Wilson's game ball is likely tied to the fact that he, well, wasn't even active for the game, and largely because of what Fields was speaking to when saying the Broncos "did Wilson dirty."
In actuality, the Broncos did Wilson a favor by taking the largest dead money cap hit in NFL history by essentially paying him to join another team.
But before doing so, the Brocnos apporcahed Wilson with an ultimatum that is analogous to blackmail.
Either Russell Wilson adjusted the injury guarantees within his contract or hit the bench. When he declined to do the former, Denver and HC Sean Payton went with the latter:
"They definitely told me I was going to be benched and all that," Wilson told ESPN last season. "That whole bye week I didn't know what was going to be the case. I was going to be ready to play, I wanted to go to Buffalo and beat Buffalo [Nov. 13]. … I wasn't going to remove the injury guarantee, this game is such a physical game, I've played 12 years and all that."
So it may not have been the victory that Wilson envisioned, but I'm sure the feeling is similar to what he imagined.
