• The Steelers enter Week 14 with a 1.5 game lead in the AFC North: Wilson finished Week 13 against the Bengals with a season-high overall PFF grade of 80.3 and helped his team extend its division lead after losing to the Ravens.
• Wilson’s Moonball remains effective: The veteran’s ability to throw deep never wavered. His overall PFF grade of 95.7 on throws over 20 yards this season ranks second among quarterbacks.
• Unleash your benefits with a PFF+ subscription: Get full access to all of our seasonal fantasy tools, including weekly ratings, WR/CB Matchup Schedules, weekly forecasts, Launch and squat optimizer and much more. Register now!
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Russell Wilson And Pittsburgh Steelers returned to action with a big win over the division foe Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13. They now have a 1.5 game lead in the AFC North and QB Russell Wilson back to his old habits, winning Super Bowls.
Wilson finished the game with a PFF passing grade of 80.3 and an adjusted completion percentage of 85.7%, both season highs. Despite the small sample size, Wilson’s overall PFF grade of 78.4 would be the highest season grade for a Steelers quarterback since then. Ben Roethlisberger in 2018. It would also be Wilson’s best mark since 2020.
*Up to 13th week
The Steelers have been searching for a quarterback for years, trying to overcome the challenges of being an eight- or nine-win team with a great defense and a bad offense. It seems they have found this defender in Wilson.
The Bengals’ game plan was to keep everything under them, which they did, resulting in Wilson’s average depth of target being 4.8 yards. However, when given the opportunity, Wilson made them pay with fantastic deep throws.
Russell Wilson is looking forward to 2024. pic.twitter.com/WWIrPxSPb1
— Nick Akridge (@PFF_NickAkridge) December 2, 2024
In the play above, the Bengals are running double-deep, but it’s not a typical double-high where everyone plays in a zone. They combine the principles of man and zone. Fuse at the bottom – bracketing George Pickens, while the safety at the top corresponds to the innermost route. Wilson picks up on this and knows that because of the footwork of the spotter at the top, he has no chance of staying above the top of the formation route. Calvin Austin. He knows Austin will win this route based on the cornerback pressing his hips into the field. Wilson throws the ball with perfect anticipation for a touchdown.
One thing that has never changed about Wilson’s game is his ability to throw deep. His overall PFF grade of 95.7 on throws over 20 yards this season ranks second among quarterbacks.
Russell Wilson patents a moon ball pic.twitter.com/uJRejkfWYA
— Nick Akridge (@PFF_NickAkridge) December 2, 2024
There’s a lot of talk about his moonball, and rightfully so: high-arcing passes almost always land perfectly in the hands of receivers.
In the clip above, Wilson knows exactly where he wants the ball to go. The move shows that the Bengals will play in man coverage, which means he will have George Pickens one-on-one in a deep fade against a rookie cornerback. He confirms that it’s man coverage after the snap, and considering the safety has to run from the back hash, it’s an easy decision that results in a perfect moon ball for a massive first down.
The Bengals then decided to change things up on defense and started to apply a lot more pressure. Wilson took advantage of this too.
Russell Wilson is bursting at the seams with anticipation for 2024 (Part 2) pic.twitter.com/SUBUnGxV36
— Nick Akridge (@PFF_NickAkridge) December 2, 2024
With eight defenders on the line of scrimmage, Wilson knows he’ll need to get the ball out quickly. In the clip above, the Bengals end up out of the game and play Cover 3. The Steelers have the perfect play call for this. They run along four vertical lines, which eliminates one of the Cover 3’s shortcomings: seams. Wilson knows that once they leave the game, they have no chance of continuing on. And with the safety on the opposite side of the field, Wilson simply needs to beat him. He does this with great anticipation as a free pass hits him in the face.
When Wilson was at the peak of his career, his ability to play outside the structure was one of the best in the NFL. Obviously it hasn’t dissipated.
DangeRuss pic.twitter.com/dDU57WOUo1
— Nick Akridge (@PFF_NickAkridge) December 2, 2024
In this clip, the Bengals throw eight defenders into coverage and Wilson feels like he needs to scramble. He could stay in the pocket longer and get to the other side of the concept, but he prefers to play from the pocket. Pat Freiermuth sees him climbing and breaks off the route, finding an open area. Wilson makes a great throw, falling right into the defender’s face, and Freiermuth does the rest for the touchdown.
The Steelers are in good shape right now and are in a great position to win the AFC North. They have a tough schedule remaining with three more games against the AFC North and matchups against the 10-2 Eagles and 11-1 Chiefs. You might look at this as a reason Pittsburgh might start to slow down, but Russell Wilson The Steelers look like a legitimate threat in the AFC.
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