Conflicting Reports Regarding Russell Wilson & Arthur Smith

The Pittsburgh Steelers season once again ended without a playoff victory.

They have not won a playoff game in eight years.

After starting the season 4-2 with Justin Fields under center, Mike Tomlin decided to bench Fields and start Russell Wilson.

Things were going smoothly and the Steelers looked good with Wilson under center.

Pittsburgh looked like a possible contender in the AFC until the season’s final few weeks.

Once week 15 arrived, the Steelers’ season went downhill. They lost four straight games to end the regular season and lost in the wild-card round.

The offense was horrendous in the final few weeks of the season and in the postseason.

Reports surfaced that Arthur Smith and Russell Wilson did not have the best relationship.

Recently, conflicting reports have emerged about whether Smith allowed Wilson to change plays at the line of scrimmage or whether this is false.

Gerry Dulac Reports Smith Did Not Want Wilson Changing Plays At Line Of Scrimmage

On February 4, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac wrote an article citing multiple sources who said, “The offense lacked imagination, and the audibles and route adjustments Wilson was making at the line of scrimmage were creating a conflict with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.”

He continued by saying, “According to several sources, Smith did not want Wilson changing plays at the line of scrimmage, like he did in Cincinnati, and deviating from the game plan.”

The game Dulac is referring to was the Steelers defeating the Bengals 44-38 in week 13.

Dulac also stated, “Wilson’s desire to attack with the pass and throw down the field clashed with Smith’s run-first mentality, causing philosophical friction between the two.”

Shortly after the playoff loss to the Ravens, Steelers correspondent for the Pat McAfee Show Mark Kaboly noted Arthur Smith and Russell Wilson had a rocky relationship.

Kaboly noted they fought through their differences as best they could. After Dulac’s report came out, Kaboly confirmed Dulac’s report was what he was referring to.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ray Fittapaldo stated he believes Arthur Smith was making most of the decisions for the Steelers offense, including the reported move to be more conservative later in the season.

Fittapaldo stated, “I think Mike (Tomlin) does leave a lot to Arthur (Smith) and lets him operate on his own. I don’t think that he has his hands on the offense as much as he does with the defense.”

Fittapaldo contradicted himself as in January, he stated on The Fan Morning Show on 93.7 The Fan that he believes the offense being more conservative was more on Tomlin than Smith.

CBS Sports NFL reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala had a completely different take, refuting Dulac’s report.

Aditi Kinkhabwala Refutes Dulac’s Report

Appearing on 93.7 The Fan, Kinkhabwala stated regarding Dulac’s report, “It is patently false, completely inaccurate. Maybe that’s not a fair way to say it. It is one-sided. It isn’t complete. You know this Poni, journalism is about getting both sides of the story and this is very clearly coming from one side.”

Kinkhabwala said she believes Wilson is trying to create a market for himself, which he does not currently have.

She stated, “In talking to coaches and general managers around the league, there’s just not a market for his services right now. And, so, when I read something like that, I read this as a desperate ploy to explain why the season ended the way it did, to assign blame elsewhere, and to perhaps try to create a market here in Pittsburgh for his services. And the truth is, it’s just not true.”

Kinkhabwala mentioned Wilson struggled to call plays in Denver and he needed a wristband to call plays. Sean Payton ran the offense in Denver and became very frustrated with Wilson. Payton and Denver grew so frustrated with Wilson that they were willing to eat a lot of his contract just to get rid of him. Kinkhabwala also said he struggled with presnap exercises and struggled to read opposing defenses.

She also said while the offensive line received a lot of blame on the Steelers that a lot of sacks were Wilson’s fault.

This is a scathing response to Dulac’s report.

Dulac’s report was one-sided and felt like it came from Wilson’s PR staff.

Whether Dulac’s report was right or what Kinkhabwala stated is more accurate, this is a bad look for the Steelers either way.