Pittsburgh Steelers fans wanted a truly open quarterback competition this summer between Kenny Pickett and Mason Rudolph; they’re not getting one, nor those quarterbacks, as the new quarterbacks are Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. But according to reports, they won’t be competing against one another either. Wilson is the starter, and consequently Fields is going to be his backup. But for how long? The Steelers can’t write that in stone if the situation dictates that you make a change.
Indeed, how soon Fields plays has become a focal point for discussion around the Steelers right now. A 2021 top-15 draft pick, many of Fields’ raw numbers aren’t very pretty, and he has a 10-28 record. But he has “all the talent in the world”, as they say, and his running ability is a great gift to him.
As for Wilson, he’s posted three consecutive losing records and the Steelers have no hard commitments to him. If he doesn’t play the way that they need him to, who’s to say that head coach Mike Tomlin doesn’t make a change? Tony Kornheiser said on his podcast that he believes that’s going to happen.
“I’m gonna tell you this, and I’ll go down on this one. I believe by Game 6 of the season Justin Fields will be the starter in Pittsburgh. I believe that”, he said on the Tony Kornheiser Show. “I am of the opinion that Justin Fields will be a starter in the NFL for 10 years”.
The Ohio State product dominated college football, especially in his one full season as starter. In 2019, he threw for 3,273 yards with 41 touchdowns to three interceptions. He added another 484 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns as well, finishing third in the Heisman Trophy voting.
His advocates argue that he hasn’t translated as well into the NFL because of his surroundings. The Chicago Bears are drafting in the top 10 in the 2024 NFL Draft for a reason. They haven’t been a good team for years, and it’s been even longer since they had a good offense.
Fields finally found a connection with someone last year after the Bears added WR DJ Moore. He completed 72 of 101 pass attempts to Moore for eight touchdowns and one interception, a 129.5 passer rating.
He could easily have a similar relationship with Steelers WR George Pickens. But he can’t do that from the bench, of course, and he may have a hard time getting off of it. From the sounds of it, the Steelers weren’t pressing for Fields. The opportunity simply presented itself during the course of events that brought Wilson here and sent Kenny Pickett to Philadelphia. The soft trade market for him almost forced the Bears’ hands to pull the trigger.
But now that Fields is here, all he has to do is prove himself. If he puts on the field the work that shows he can play, he’ll put himself in position to do so at some point. Perhaps not by the sixth game of the 2024 regular season, but you never know.
