Back in mid-March, the Pittsburgh Steelers had quite a bit of a whirlwind week, signing Russell Wilson in free agency and then a few days later trading for Justin Fields, sending shockwaves throughout the NFL.
After struggling through the 2023 season with Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph under center, the Steelers completely reshaped the quarterback room with the additions of Wilson and Fields as well as veteran Kyle Allen, saying goodbye to Pickett, Trubisky and Rudolph in the process.
Excitement is high regarding the Steelers’ quarterback room — for most. CBS Sports’ Jordan Dajani isn’t in that camp. Instead, he believes that the trade for Fields is the one trade this offseason across the NFL landscape that will “pay off the least.”
“The Pittsburgh Steelers traded for one year of Justin Fields while already tabbing Russell Wilson as QB1. Will Russ be good? Or maybe the better question is, will he be bad enough to warrant a benching? Seems to me Pittsburgh gave up a draft pick just to create a quarterback controversy among its fan base,” Dajani writes regarding the Fields trade.Â
To be fair, Dajani has a point. After signing Wilson to the veteran minimum of one-year, $1.21 million in free agency following his release from the Denver Broncos, turning around and trading for Fields and then declining his fifth-year option (the correct move) seems all a bit confusing, especially with the Steelers and Wilson stating publicly that the goal is to do a long-term contract with Wilson after the season.Â
The Steelers said the same thing about Fields after trading for him, too.
But right now, it seems that the pecking order will be Wilson as QB1 and Fields as the backup in 2024. After that, who knows what happens. If the Steelers do an extension with Fields and then sign Wilson long-term after the season, should he play well, where does that put Pittsburgh then? What does that do for Fields and his development?
It’s all a bit confusing.
But the Steelers were tired of poor play under center and threw as much as they could at the wall at the position to see what sticks. They were able to get Fields for dirt cheap (a conditional sixth-round pick in 2025) and get to put him in Arthur Smith’s offensive scheme to see how he develops.
Maybe Fields never sees the field as a true quarterback this season. That would be tough for the 11th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, but that would also mean that Wilson is playing well and the Steelers are a good team, which is the intended outcome in the end.
Creating a quarterback controversy wasn’t the goal of GM Omar Khan or head coach Mike Tomlin with the move to sign Wilson and then trade for Fields. The goal was to create competition. That’s been the entire idea under Khan’s guidance since he took over in 2022. Competition brings out the best and breeds success. That’s what the Steelers are going for.
Wilson and Fields are on board with that mentality and mindset. Maybe Dajani should be, too.
