Steelers' Russell Wilson Having A Problem Connecting With Wide Receivers After Missed Practices

The Pittsburgh Steelers are now well into training camp, and a better idea of what the roster will look like is taking shape. New quarterback Russell Wilson has finally been a full participant in practice, as he has been dealing with a minor calf injury since the start of training camp. The injury was described as a non-issue, however after being held out and limited for nearly two weeks of practices, Wilson's missed time is showing as he has been struggling to connect with some of his wide receivers.

Wilson was held out of the Steelers' first handful of practices, before eventually being lightly worked into practices. He would participate in seven on seven drills, and hand the ball off a few times during team periods. Recently, he has been a full participant. He has been throwing and working through team scrimmages, which is a good sign of his health. The issue is that his missed time is showing as he struggles to gel with some wide receivers, which was reported by ESPN's Brooke Pryor.

If Wilson is ever seen throwing the ball to Jacob Copeland in a game, it likely means the Steelers are in trouble. Copeland likely doesn't make the final roster, so these mishaps aren't super concerning. Wilson is getting almost all of the first team snaps during practice on Thursday, even with Justin Fields impressing during Wilson's absence. This is a clear effort of the coaching staff to get Wilson caught up to speed, and compensate for his lack of participation early on in camp. 

Even though the time he missed was significant, Wilson is a seasoned veteran in the league. He knows how to succeed. He was throwing with his new receivers during the offseason, and he has been seen continuously chatting with them on the field, even while he was injured. Wilson can learn a playbook quickly, and he has always been praised for his leadership. By the time the regular season rolls around, he should be ready to go without any issues.

His issues throwing the ball to Copeland aren't a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but any mistake Wilson makes favors Fields; and vice versa. The two are in some form of a quarterback competition and the slightest mistakes do matter. Wilson has a large lead on Fields, which is shown by him being listed as the team's starting quarterback, despite the large chunk of missed practices. 

Steelers Quarterback Competition Doesn't Have Much Validity

Head Coach Mike Tomlin is known for being stubborn, in good ways and bad. He has said that Fields and Wilson are competing for the starting job, but many can tell this doesn't seem to be a real quarterback competition. Wilson has had "pole position" to be the starting quarterback since the team traded for Fields, which just seems to be a term Tomlin used so that he doesn't have to feel pressure to start Fields.

Fields has been available for every practice of training camp, and he took full advantage of the extra snaps he received while Wilson was injured. He has been praised in the national media, yet Tomlin seems to downplay his success. Fields' main issues in the past have been consistency, and he has managed to stack many good practices so far in training camp. This quarterback battle should be a lot closer than Tomlin has let on, but it seems Wilson will be the Week 1 starter no matter what happens. 

What do you think about Wilson's struggles with his wide receivers? Let us know in the comments below!

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