Steelers' Russell Wilson continues to get mercilessly ripped into by national media

Mike Moraitis

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Steelers' Russell Wilson continues to get mercilessly ripped into by national media image

Following a lackluster debut on in preseason Week 2 against the Buffalo Bills, the national media has been highly critical (to say the least) of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson.

Wilson completed 8-of-10 passes for 47 scoreless yards in his preseason debut that saw his five drives go punt, punt, punt, punt, missed field goal. Wilson certainly wasn't good, but the offensive line did him no favors with poor pass protection, either.

In the wake of that performance, several members of the national media have been absolutely ripping into the Steelers quarterback, with former NFL offensive lineman Mark Schlereth offering the most scathing take.

"Russell Wilson has got to do a better job of understanding football and throwing the football to open receivers," Schlereth said on The Stinkin Truth Podcast. "As opposed to pulling the football and taking sack after sack after sack. Three-and-out, three-and-out, and three-and-out."

Schlereth says Wilson needs to take more accountability and he also accused the quarterback of being selfish, saying Wilson "wants to be a hero."

Schlereth is far from the only one shredding Wilson, though. Stephen A. Smith also went in on him and thinks Pittsburgh is destined for last place in the AFC North.

"The Steelers looked awful offensively," Smith said on First Take. "They looked absolutely awful. I'm very, very disgusted by what I saw. Here's what really resonates with me: I'm thinking about the fact that (Wilson) took those three sacks, you're still holding onto the ball a little too long. 

"Why is that relevant? Because that's why Sean Payton couldn't stand him. That's why Sean Payton ran him out of Denver. That's why Denver didn't hesitate to push him out of the Mile High City, even though they owe him $37.8million.

"You've got some weapons but in the end it's going to come down to your quarterback play and what kind of a threat he is. But I'm looking at Russell Wilson and thinking, 'damn, this is why the Denver Broncos didn't want him.' I don't want to hear anything about the calf injury. You're still holding onto the ball for too long. I'm not enthused.

"I know the AFC North is no joke. I'm looking at (Joe) Burrow, Lamar Jackson, I see what Deshaun Watson's got. I've never said this before because I believe in Mike Tomlin so much. But the Steelers have last place written all over them. I don't see how they get out of this."

On top of those two, other media members continue to pound the drum for the Steelers to start Justin Fields, with Chris Simms, Mina Kimes, James Jones and Dan Orlovsky among them.

We can probably find more people ripping into Wilson, but you get the idea. The only he's going to silence this onslaught is to play better. He'll look to do that in preseason Week 3 against the Detroit Lions.

Mike Moraitis

Mike Moraitis Photo

After cutting his teeth with Bleacher Report, Mike Moraitis has covered the Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans for FanSided, and the Titans and New York Giants for USA TODAY Sports Media Group. On top of his duties with Sporting News, Mike is the managing editor and lead writer for Titans Wire.