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Yes, Russell Wilson<\/a> is a free agent.<\/p>\n The former Seattle Seahawks<\/a> star signed a one-year contract with the New York Giants<\/a> in March 2025, and that deal left him set to hit the market again in 2026.<\/p>\n That is the easy answer. The more interesting one is what comes next.<\/p>\n Wilson\u2019s market is not moving in a vacuum. One of the biggest remaining quarterback questions in the league is Aaron Rodgers, who said in March there was \u201cno deadline\u201d<\/a> for his decision about playing in 2026, while Steelers<\/a> owner Art Rooney II later said he expected an answer before the NFL draft. That matters because Pittsburgh is the most obvious veteran-quarterback spot still hanging in the balance.<\/p>\n Why Russell Wilson is a free agent again<\/p>\n Wilson\u2019s Giants stint was always short-term on paper. NFL.com reported he signed for one year at $10.5 million<\/a>, with incentives pushing the deal higher, and Spotrac lists that contract as a 2025-only agreement.<\/p>\n The on-field result did not exactly build momentum toward a quick return. ESPN reported the Giants benched Wilson for rookie Jaxson Dart<\/a> after three games in September 2025, and by later in the year Wilson had shifted into a mentor\/support role around the rookie. ESPN\u2019s April ranking of top remaining unsigned free agents described Wilson as more of a veteran No. 2 at this stage.<\/p>\n So while Wilson is absolutely a free agent, he does not appear to be sitting atop the market as a clear-cut starter waiting for a bidding war. He looks more like an experienced veteran who could still make sense in the right room, at the right price, with the right expectations.<\/p>\n Steelers make the most sense if Rodgers does not land there<\/p>\n If the question is where Wilson could reasonably sign right now, Pittsburgh is the cleanest answer.<\/p>\n Not because the Steelers are definitely choosing Wilson, but because Rodgers\u2019 unresolved status keeps that door cracked open. Rooney\u2019s public timeline matters here: if the Steelers truly want clarity before the draft, then every other veteran option sits behind that decision.<\/p>\n There is some awkwardness to a Wilson-Steelers reunion after his previous stint there did not turn into a long-term answer. But from a football and timing standpoint, it is still plausible. Pittsburgh is trying to stay competitive, ESPN recently noted quarterback<\/a> was not necessarily viewed as a top-three draft need in this class, and Wilson at least offers starting experience if Rodgers says no.<\/p>\n Other possible fits come with more caution<\/p>\n The Saints<\/a> are an easy team to mention because Derek Carr retired last year, but New Orleans also has had reason to give younger quarterbacks a runway rather than plug in another late-career veteran. NFL.com noted Carr\u2019s retirement cleared the path for that transition<\/a>. That makes the Saints a possible fit only if they want extra insurance, not the cleanest destination.<\/p>\n Cleveland is another team people will connect to any veteran quarterback, but the Browns<\/a> also enter the draft with multiple picks and clear roster-building decisions ahead. That makes them harder to call a true Wilson favorite unless their draft plan breaks a certain way.<\/p>\n That is really the key to Wilson\u2019s market right now: it is less about one team urgently needing Russell Wilson specifically, and more about whether a contender or transitional team misses on its preferred quarterback plan first. Rodgers is the biggest domino in that group. The draft is the second.<\/p>\n For now, the answer fans are searching for is simple. Russell Wilson is a free agent. The harder question is whether he is still viewed as a starter, or whether his next contract looks more like a veteran bridge or backup job. Based on the current market, the latter feels more realistic unless the Steelers\u2019 Rodgers wait ends with a \u201cno.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tErik Anderson<\/a> is an award-winning sports journalist covering the NBA, MLB and NFL for Heavy.com. He also focuses on the trading card market. His work has appeared in nationally-recognized outlets including The New York Times, Associated Press , USA Today, and ESPN. More about Erik Anderson<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Seahawks\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Yes, Russell Wilson is a free agent. The former Seattle Seahawks star signed a one-year contract with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":870327,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2081],"tags":[7,6,238,237,261,2635],"class_list":{"0":"post-870326","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-seattle-seahawks","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-nfl","10":"tag-seahawks","11":"tag-seattle","12":"tag-seattle-seahawks","13":"tag-seattleseahawks"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116434267094607210","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=870326"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870326\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/870327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=870326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=870326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=870326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}