Extra ‘Carr’ in the garage
Count ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler among those who believe that Justin Fields will be the Steelers QB in 2025 instead of Russell Wilson.
“The sense I get is that Justin Fields has an edge over Russell Wilson in Pittsburgh’s free agent quarterback pecking order,” the former ESPN.com Steelers beat reporter said Sunday. “There is sentiment for Fields in the building, and both sides would be open to a return. The Steelers have at least another week to crystallize those plans, and they certainly haven’t ruled out Wilson at this point.”
NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport expressed a similar sentiment over the weekend. He added that Derek Carr could be a fallback option if the New Orleans Saints let him go.
There is still a chance as of right now that Derek Carr becomes free. So you have a team like maybe the Steelers, maybe the Titans,” Rapoport said via a SteelersDepot.com transcript. “There are options out there for him. Unless the Saints get a deal done or keep him at his $40 million number right now, Carr could also be available. So this carousel is not quite settled just yet.”
Via OverTheCap.com, if Carr is cut in New Orleans pre-June 1, he’d still count $50 million in dead cap charges for the Saints and only save $1.3 million this year. If he is cut after June 1, he’d be a $21 million dead charge and save $30 million.
Minnesota movement
Another name that has been on the periphery of the Steelers’ quarterback conversation has been Sam Darnold. If the Vikings cut ties with him, Fowler says Pittsburgh could be a landing spot.
“The Giants, Raiders and Titans are among the logical options. And I’m not totally discounting the Steelers here — not yet, at least,” Fowler added.
Darnold won 14 games for the Vikings in 2024. But Minnesota has last year’s first-round draft choice, J.J. McCarthy, coming back from injury this year. Darnold was 43 of 81 with 11 sacks, one touchdown, no interceptions and a 5.05 yards per attempt average over the last two games of 2024-25.
