**Will Patrick Queen or Payton Wilson finish the season as the Steelers’ every-down linebacker?**
Although Patrick Queen is going into this season once again wearing the green dot, will Payton Wilson take that job? The Steelers claim they view Wilson as an every-down player, and he certainly intends to be. During the preseason, they even gave him an opportunity to wear the green dot and practice on setting the defense.
Of course, Patrick Queen is the one the Steelers spent many millions of dollars on. They draft Payton Wilson in the third round, so there is a sense of investment there, too. But it feels a little different when you’re talking about a guy you’re paying so much. And it’s not like Queen isn’t a very good player—he earned an All-Pro in 2023, so he can play.
He did have a disappointing, or at least less impactful than desired first season here in 2024, though. And Queen admits that Wilson is faster than he is. The only reason Wilson lasted as long as he did was due to health concerns. As a rookie last year, he already showed he can play, and they knew he had a high football IQ during the pre-draft process.
Still, you don’t want to go around making changes to the green dot in-season. Unless a situation arises in which Patrick Qeen misses games and Payton Wilson does such a stellar job in his absence that they just leave him in that role, I don’t know that we see the Steelers even entertain making that change.
At the same time, I don’t know that we should expect a lot of dime this year. If the Steelers do play dime, either Queen or Wilson will have to come off. And if they’re going to be in and out of that look on a snap-to-snap basis, you can’t have Wilson running off the field switching helmets. As I’m sure you know, only one player on a unit can wear the green dot at a time.
But what would it take, hypothetically, for the Steelers to leave Payton Wilson on the field instead of Patrick Queen? I hardly see a circumstance in which it would plausibly happen. But if they like him that much, it might be something they consider. An early bye week doesn’t make it any more likely.
_After another disappointing season and months of retooling, the Steelers are set to try it all again in 2025. Though they limped into the playoffs, they once again embarrassed themselves therein._
_Just like last year, the biggest question hanging over the Steelers is_ [_the quarterback question_](https://steelersdepot.com/2025/04/schrager-thinkhttps:/steelersdepot.com/2025/06/aaron-rodgers-confirms-he-plans-to-retire-after-2025-nfl-season/)_. They settled in on Aaron Rodgers, but we still have a lot to learn about him. The_ [_2025 NFL Draft class_](https://www.steelers.com/draft/) _could play a big role, but veteran additions like Jalen Ramsey will be paramount._
_Now we are heading into the regular season. From Rodgers to George Pickens to Minkah Fitzpatrick and Ramsey, we’ve seen the Steelers make some big changes. Now it’s about evaluating the roster in place and figuring out how it all works out._