Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers have been at this for a long time. The prime-time lights aren't new. The stakes for their teams aren't, either.
The stakes for themselves personally? Well, that's another matter.
When the 35-year-old Wilson steps onto the field as the starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2) for the first time on Sunday night to face Rodgers and the New York Jets (2-4) — a near certainty after Steelers coach Mike Tomlin deemed Wilson healthy enough to be “in consideration” to take over for Justin Fields — Wilson will do it under a specter of doubt that he didn't run into much during his first 12 seasons.
And Wilson will do it while trying to beat a familiar foe. Wilson and Rodgers met frequently in the 2010s and early 2020s while playing for Seattle and Green Bay. Now they're trying to burnish their legacies in places where the sight of them wearing the home team's uniform still feels a little surreal.
“We've had battles along the way and everything else,” Wilson said. “I really respect how he throws the football, how he goes about throwing it and it’s very special to watch.”
Tomlin seems to feel the same way about Wilson, whom he lured to Pittsburgh minutes into free agency in March after Denver paid Wilson nearly $38 million to go away. Yet the optimism that greeted Wilson when he arrived was blunted during the summer and early fall while he dealt with a calf injury. That gave Fields an opportunity he literally ran with while leading Pittsburgh into a tie for first in the AFC North.
Yet Tomlin wants more from an offense that ranks 26th in yards. He hopes to find it in Wilson's right arm, which Tomlin believes has more than enough life left to make up for Wilson's diminished mobility.
How Wilson performs could define Pittsburgh's season. The same goes in New York, where the Jets have undergone a significant overhaul over the last few weeks in hopes of providing the club and its 40-year-old quarterback with a spark.
The Jets fired coach Robert Saleh on Oct. 8 and on Tuesday reunited Rodgers with longtime running mate Davante Adams when they acquired the three-time All-Pro wide receiver from Las Vegas.
“It has been strange, but really fun to see my friend,” Rodgers said of Adams, who is rooming with Rodgers for now.
Rodgers would love to see Adams on the field and preferably in the end zone. A little bit of scoring might go a long way for a team that boasts the league's second-ranked defense.
It's much the same for the Steelers, who have allowed the second-fewest points in the league. Tomlin believes his team has been good, but not great. If Wilson can rediscover some of the “let Russ cook” magic of his prime, Pittsburgh believes it can close the gap between itself and the teams atop the AFC that it has been chasing in recent years.
Curiosity and respect led Tomlin to turn to Wilson.
Wilson is intent on making a decision that looks risky on the outside look wise in the end.
“I came here for one reason (and) that was to win a Super Bowl. ... I think we have that opportunity,” Wilson said. “But we got to do the work. There’s a lot more to go.”
Up and running againAfter a slow start to the season during which Jets running back Breece Hall averaged 3 yards per carry, the third-year pro had a breakout performance against Buffalo.
Hall ran for a season-high 113 yards on 18 attempts and caught five passes for 56 yards. It was easily his best game of the season and perhaps not coincidentally came with passing game coordinator Todd Downing calling the plays in place of demoted offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett.
“We know what a dynamic playmaker Breece is,” Downing said. “You guys have all seen it. You know he’s electric when you give him a little bit of space and it was awesome to see him play with that passion and joy, and hopefully we can build on that and make some strides in that area.”
Watt’s up?
The Jets’ offensive line has had some trouble keeping Rodgers clean in the pocket — and now faces a major test in Pittsburgh outside linebacker T.J. Watt.
Rodgers, dealing with a sprained ankle and sore knee recently, has been sacked 11 times and hit 30 times in the last three games — all losses. And here comes Watt, who has 4 1/2 sacks this season and forced a pair of fumbles in last week's win at Las Vegas.
“It goes back to moving the target, sometimes chipping them, sometimes sifting them, sometimes cutting them and just keeping him off balance,” Jets interim coach Jeff Ulbrich said of trying to contain Watt. “He’s a game wrecker, as we all know. He’s one of the best players, one of the best defensive players in this league and he’s a generational talent. So, you’ve got to account for him every single play.”
50 years of excellence
Pittsburgh will wear throwback jerseys — gray facemasks included — honoring the 1974 team that won the first of the franchise's six Super Bowls and set a standard for excellence that has endured for five decades.
“I walk past those Lombardi (trophies) every day when I come to work, and it’s a source of inspiration and energy for me, and I want it to be that for our guys,” Tomlin said. “I don’t want them to run away from those expectations. I want them to run to them. ... And I just think it’s an important point, a component of being a Pittsburgher and being a Steeler.”
