Sources – Russell Wilson will sign a free agent deal with the Steelers

Nine-time Pro Bowl quarterback and former Super Bowl champion Russell Wilson plans to sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers, league sources told ESPN.

Wilson will sign a one-year, team-friendly contract. The Denver Broncos, who told him last week that he would be released, will end up paying $38 million in his salary while he wears the black and yellow.

In a social media post Sunday night, Wilson wrote: “Year 13. Grateful.” He had an accompanying video of the Steelers and their fans.

Year 13. Grateful. @steelers pic.twitter.com/0U4Q2sRtXs

-Russell Wilson (@DangeRussWilson) March 11, 2024

Courtesy of the Broncos Because he is still under contract until the start of the new league year on Wednesday, Wilson visited Steelers officials in Pittsburgh for more than six hours on Friday. He met, among other things, with coach Mike Tomlin and new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. The two sides had a common interest that led to a one-year deal.

Wilson now heads to Pittsburgh with Kenny Pickett, the Steelers' 2022 first-round pick, the only quarterback currently under contract with the team. Mason Rudolph enters free agency after starting three games for Pittsburgh last season.

The Broncos told Wilson, 35, last week that they would release him on Wednesday, ending a tumultuous two-season streak in which Denver went 11-19 in his prime and failed to make the playoffs. He was benched with two games remaining in 2023, and finished the season with 3,070 yards to go with 26 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

The Broncos signed Wilson to a five-year, $242.6 million deal after he arrived in a blockbuster trade with the Seattle Seahawks in 2022. They will have $85 million in dead money on their salary cap over the next two seasons due to the release.

Wilson spent 10 seasons in Seattle, where he made nine Pro Bowls and won the Super Bowl in 2014. He was a third-round pick of the Seahawks in 2012, throwing for 43,653 yards with 334 touchdowns and 106 interceptions.

Wilson was asked about his future during an appearance on “I Am an Athlete” with former Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall last month, and he said winning is his top priority.

“Over the next two years, I want to win two [Super Bowls]”I want to feel the cold of that cup again,” he told Marshall. “I love the city [of Denver] And everything else, but you also want to be like that [in] A place that wants you too. The thing I want to do is win, that's all that matters to me.”

He has beaten the Steelers during his career. In two games against Tomlin and Pittsburgh, Wilson is 2-0 with eight touchdown passes, no interceptions and a 147.1 passer rating.

The Steelers' 2024 schedule includes a game in Denver against the Broncos, which could now see Wilson return.