Steelers QB Russell Wilson's 'Look at Me' Sideline Video Going Viral

Quarterback Russell Wilson didn't play for the Pittsburgh Steelers for the second week in a row, and for the second straight game the Steelers won.

But that's not to say that Wilson was out of sight or out of mind. In fact, he was front and center on the field prior to the game warming up.

There were some who took exception to Wilson's actions prior to a contest in which he neither started nor played. Among them was Andrew Fillipponi of 937 The Fan in Pittsburgh.

"Russell Wilson is warming up more than 2 hours before a game he has no chance [of] playing in. Why?" Fillipponi posted to X on Sunday, September 15. "I think this is why he gets criticized for being a look at me guy."

While one can certainly make the argument that Wilson was shining a spotlight on himself ahead of the Steelers' eventual road victory over the Denver Broncos , there are other reasonable perspectives.

One of them is that Wilson was the team's emergency quarterback Sunday, which is a new classification in the NFL this season that doesn't rob a team of one of its 53 game-day roster spots.

Wilson has been hampered by a calf injury, which is why he didn't start Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons despite being named the starter at the conclusion of training camp. The Steelers elevated Kyle Allen to the second-string position to back up starter Justin Fields this weekend in Denver due to Wilson's health concerns.

However, if Fields and Allen had both suffered injuries and been unable to play, Wilson would have gotten the nod.

But it's also fair to speculate that Wilson may have wanted to be on the field in Denver. Broncos second-year head coach Sean Payton ran Wilson out of town there at the end of last season before replacing him with first-round draft pick Bo Nix this year.

It was Fields, however, who got the glory in the end by leading the Steelers to their second consecutive road victory and 2-0 start to kick off the campaign. Wilson may be feeling the heat around the starting job because of that, as Pittsburgh will now face a difficult decision under center when Wilson is healthy enough to play.