The Re-Branding of Russell Wilson
Russell Wilson has made a name for himself not only as a Super Bowl- winning quarterback but also as a masterful yet cringeworthy marketing machine. From his weird Tik Tok videos to this flat out bizarre Subway commercial for his trademarked “Dangerwich” sub, he has cornered the market on corny.
Check out PFT’s reaction on social media which sums up his public persona perfectly:
He delivers this entire monologue like a serial killer whose calmly talking to someone he tied to a chair with their mouth taped shut pic.twitter.com/AJtGI9RMGs
— PFT Commenter (@PFTCommenter) September 27, 2022
Say Anything
Wilson also has the reputation of being disingenuous and difficult to communicate with in and outside of the locker room. Former Seattle Seahawks teammates, Marshawn Lynch and Richard Sherman spoke about him being unapproachable on Sherman’s podcast.
“Yeah, we talk to him – his manager. His manager,” said Lynch about having to use a middleman to talk to Wilson, “If I can’t call you direct, I ain’t calling you – especially if I went to war with you,” he said.
The eccentric nature of Wilson’s behavior was put under the microscope after he signed a 5-year 243-million-dollar deal with the Denver Broncos prior to the 2022 season. There were rumblings in training camp that he didn’t grasp the playbook and was calling Seattle Seahawks audibles in practice.
He also did himself no favors by demanding his own private office and parking spot in contract negotiations. What followed was a disastrous 5-12 season with head coach Nathaniel Hackett being fired after week 15. The Broncos hired Sean Peyton as their coach who was less than fond of the veteran quarterback he inherited. Despite this, Wilson had a solid season with 26 TD’s and 8 INT’s all while being threatened with a demotion if he didn’t change language in his contract.
It’s safe to say that Wilson comes to Pittsburgh with an image and likeness problem, which the Steelers hope he resolves by playing winning football.
After signing a 1-year contract for $1.2 million, the Steelers are hardly all-in on “Dange Russ” and are banking on a slight career resurgence while using the money saved to build a roster that can compete in the highly competitive AFC North division.
Back to the Future
The formula for success should sound familiar to Wilson as the Steelers are designed to run the ball and play disruptive defense. New offensive coordinator Arthur Smith would love to see a return of the quarterback that excelled at play-action, roll outs and misdirection early in his career.
It’s been reported that Wilson was guaranteed the starting position at quarterback to start the offseason. But there is no denying that it is an open competition between him and Justin Fields who the team acquired via trade with the Chicago Bears.
“It’s a competition. Obviously, we get to Latrobe, I’m sure things will heat up, but both those guys knew that, however they were acquired, and they got here and I think it’s been pretty transparent,” said Smith after stating Wilson was currently in the ‘pole position.’
Stand by Me
Wilson seems to be enjoying his new lease on football life here in ‘Da Burgh’ (for the record I hate the moniker ‘Da Burgh’ but we know ‘DangeRuss’ says it all the time to his homies) as he immediately took to social media to change his catchphrase from ‘Let’s Ride’ to ‘Here We Go!” Not exactly an original slogan but one the fans will rally around, if he wins.
To be honest, the city of Pittsburgh and the Yinzer faithful enjoy corniness from time to time. We have a passion for polka music, wave a Terrible Towel and embraced Ju-Ju Smith Schuster riding a scooter to work.
What this blue-collar city will not tolerate is being fake or phony. Wilson will soon learn he doesn’t need to post videos of his alter-ego Mr. Unlimited (cringe level -UNLIMITED) to thrive in the Steel City. He just needs to grab his hard-hat and lunch pail, with Primanti’s #2 best seller inside, and get to work… and if he ends up taking this team on a playoff run the entire city will be catering their tailgate parties with nothing buy Subway. ‘Here We Go!’
