While getting off to a slow start, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson made a very solid debut in the team’s 37-15 win over the New York Jets in Week 7. Wilson threw for 264 yards and two touchdowns, while adding another score sneaking up on a quarterback. Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger thinks Wilson will continue to get better. As Wilson becomes more comfortable, the Steelers will start to open up the playbook more.

“As Russ gets more comfortable and gets the rust off, I think you’ll see everyone get more involved, make more unique plays, maybe use (Darnell) Washington in the red zone. It won’t just be deep balls and hoping George Pickens continues to play because he’s most likely not going to make those juggling catches every week,” Roethlisberger said in the latest episode of his Footbahlin podcast. “For the most part, I think you’re going to see a Russell Wilson that will continue to get better as he gets more comfortable with the outdoors.”

He also said that as Wilson gets further away from his calf injury, it should boost his confidence, and we might see him use his legs more.

While I don’t expect Wilson to be a real threat using his legs, the thought that he will continue to get better and more confident as he gets healthier makes a lot of sense. It was also Wilson’s first live game action since Pittsburgh’s second preseason game, so there was some early rust he had to knock off before settling in and getting some action. As he becomes more comfortable in the offense, his confidence should grow and the offense could expand.

While Wilson spread the ball around last night, he completed just 16 passes, and a quarter of those completions were to TE Darnell Washington on the same concept. Washington is a big body and can be a red zone threat for the Steelers, and we saw them get him involved in Week 2 against the Broncos. The Steelers could try to continue making him a threat in the red zone. However, as Wilson becomes more comfortable, he will continue to try to spread the ball, and we could see an uptick in production from guys like TE Pat Freiermuth and WR Van Jefferson.

While Pickens is a controversial catching wizard, Roethlisberger is right that he can’t be expected to make some of the catches he made last night every week. It’s never a bad idea to throw the ball to Pickens in single coverage and see if he can make a play. Still, this can’t be the foundation of Pittsburgh’s passing attack, and we should see Wilson continue to grow and the offense evolve as he settles in under center.

The Steelers are back in primetime in Week 8 with a Monday Night Football game against the New York Giants next week. That game could be a good opportunity for Wilson to get more comfortable against a Giants defense that struggled in Week 7.