For more than a decade, the Pittsburgh Steelers went into every new season with zero questions as to who their starting quarterback would be. Ben Roethlisberger provided stability at the most important position in the game that is tough to replicate, as seen by the past few years in Pittsburgh. Fans who didn’t remember a time before Roethlisberger had no idea what a battle for the starting position throughout the offseason looked like. Now, they’re becoming all too familiar with it.
As it stands at this moment, the Steelers seem to feel confident slotting Russell Wilson in as their starting quarterback even though they just traded for Justin Fields. Perhaps the plan is for Wilson to play out his contract this year while also mentoring the younger Fields, avoiding an arduous competition between the two during training camp and the preseason. Stability, especially at quarterback, is key for a team to communicate and function to the best of its ability, so this decision wouldn’t be unwise. However, it appears that not everyone agrees with that assessment.
Deshaun Watson is a player Steelers fans have become more familiar with in recent years on account of him being traded to the rival Cleveland Browns. However, what some fans may not be aware of is Watson’s podcast where he talks football with his co-host, Quincy Avery. On the most recent episode, Watson and Avery, alongside Browns tight end David Njoku, discussed Fields being traded to the Steelers.
“For me, and I’m very on the conservative side, so I think Russell’s gonna be better. I think they should have a competition, best man wins, at the end of the day, but to each his own,” Watson said to Avery when asked if he thought Fields would become the starter by the end of the year. “That’s their own organization, they said Russell’s the guy. I think if he’s the guy, I think Justin could have went to a better situation so he can play.”
While Watson’s play in recent years has been lackluster, he’s shown in the past that he can play at a high level, so it’s fair for him to make his observation. Njoku even brought up the possibility of Fields sitting and being mentored by Wilson this year, but Watson countered with the fact that the team would have to pick up Fields’ fifth-year option, a decision that Pittsburgh has to make by the beginning of May.
Watson also said that Fields could have gone somewhere else to actually play, but that doesn’t necessarily feel true. Are there teams with a worse situation at quarterback than the Steelers? Yes. Do those teams have as many pieces in place on offense to help a quarterback succeed? That point is debatable. While wide receiver is thin at the moment and the offensive line still has holes, it would be naive to think general manager Omar Khan isn’t going to address those issues at some point.
Along with leadership from Mike Tomlin, these factors leave Pittsburgh as one of the best landing spots for Fields. As Tomlin would probably say, Fields should not run away from adversity. Where Watson sees an unsure situation where playing time isn’t guaranteed, Fields should see a place where he can grow and learn as a player while also competing and proving that he is a starting quarterback in this league. Iron sharpens iron has been Tomlin’s team motto for a long time, and considering the Steelers’ history of success, there’s no reason to run from that now.
