The Steelers don’t need Payton Wilson to become a headline act. They need something simpler, and maybe more important: proof that he can be counted on in the middle of the defense.
That’s the real question hanging over Pittsburgh’s linebacker room. Wilson has the kind of athletic juice the Steelers have been chasing at inside linebacker for a long time.
He can run, close, cover space and bring speed to a unit that has often needed it. The upside is obvious.
The uncertainty is whether that upside is ready to turn into something the coaching staff can lean on every week.
ESPN’s Mike Clay put that tension front and center in “Ranking 2026 NFL rosters: Best projected starting lineups.” Clay said Wilson could make the “Year 3 leap,” but he also pointed out that Wilson had trouble holding off Cole Holcomb and Malik Harrison in 2025.
The numbers tell the same story. Wilson played in all 17 games and piled up 126 tackles, two sacks and an interception, but he started only four times.
Harrison opened nine of his 11 games, while Holcomb added three starts after missing the 2024 season while recovering from a devastating, career-threatening knee injury. Together, Harrison and Holcomb combined for 12 starts.
Wilson had four.
That’s the gap Pittsburgh has to close.
A third season is supposed to be where things start to click. The game slows down, the processing gets cleaner, and the physical tools show up with fewer mistakes attached to them. The Steelers need that version of Wilson, especially with Patrick Queen beside him.
Pittsburgh has enough pass-rush talent to make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks. What it still has to solve is the space underneath and the damage teams can do between the tackles.
That’s where Wilson matters. If he can become reliable enough to stay on the field more and play more effectively, the Steelers suddenly have the speed and range they’ve been missing at the position.
If he can’t, the questions don’t go away. They just get pushed back onto the rest of the defense, with the front and the secondary left to keep covering for a linebacker group that still hasn’t fully earned trust.
In Other News...
One Steelers Veteran Suddenly Doesn't Look Safe Anymore
Training camp is about to turn the Steelers wide receiver room into one of the more interesting battles on the roster, and Ben Skowronek is right in the middle of it. A veteran with value beyond the box score, Skowronek has long looked like the kind of player who helps a team in more than one phase, and his place in Pittsburgh has seemed relatively secure as the competition around him heats up.
But the numbers game is getting tighter, with Pittsburgh expected to keep only five or six receivers, and that leaves very little room for anyone to coast into September. Skowronek still has a case built on his versatility and his standing around the roster, yet the Steelers also have several younger options pushing for those limited spots, which makes the final evaluation more complicated than it first appeared. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Already Have A Troubling Linebacker Situation Brewing
Malik Harrison arrived in Pittsburgh with a chance to settle into a meaningful role in the middle of the defense, but his path to doing so has already become a little murky. The Steelers signed him to a two-year deal in 2025, and with the offseason moving along, the team has also brought back Cole Holcomb, creating a crowded picture at linebacker for a unit that still needs dependable answers in the middle.
Harrisons standing now looks tied to more than just his own play, because the Steelers will be watching how he fits in camp and how the depth chart sorts itself out around Holcomb. The veteran has battled serious injuries, and his health and availability could shape the entire competition, leaving Pittsburgh with a decision that may not be fully settled until the summer starts to unfold. [Read more 🡒]