Mike Tomlin has made it clear time and again that he wants volunteers, not hostages on his team, which is a good strategy. The best way to create and maintain a strong culture is by filling the locker room with players who want to be there. This offseason, the Steelers made quite a few additions, both on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. One new player, Justin Fields, recently spoke about how his number one trade destination out of Chicago was Pittsburgh. That should be good news for the team, but one analyst believes it’s a foolish decision by Fields.
On FS1’s The Herd, Colin Cowherd spoke about Fields’ comments about wanting to come to the Steelers, panning the decision.
“It is interesting, his judgment that this was the place to go. I’d want to be the number one starter. I would want to have an offensive coach. I already had a defensive coach. I would want all the snaps in the OTAs. First-team snaps, he’s not getting those,” Cowherd said Wednesday. “He’s once again going to have a defensive coach and a defensive culture, a so-so offensive line, in a tougher conference, and arguably, probably a tougher division.”
While Tomlin is a defensive-minded coach, he’s also one of the best leaders in the league. If anyone could empower and inspire confidence in Fields, it’s Tomlin. Also, the team made several investments along the offensive line this offseason, so there’s optimism that that unit will be much improved. Despite all of this, Cowherd goes on to list several different teams that he believes Fields would have more success with.
“I would understand Justin Fields saying, ‘Get me to the Raiders. They got weapons and they need a guy.’ That makes sense,” Cowherd said. “Or, ‘Get me a young, smart, offensive coach.’ I get that too. Or ‘Like Jared Goff, just give me a great offensive line. Atlanta’s got a great o-line, get me to Atlanta, or the NFC South period.’ But I would argue, this is actually not a great place. Pittsburgh has struggled offensively.”
Cowherd saying the Steelers are not a great place offensively and then listing places like the Raiders and the Falcons as places Fields would be better off at is puzzling. Both those teams have defensive-minded head coaches, and both have struggled on offense recently. Just as well, saying that he’d be better off with any of the NFC South teams is bizarre. The Panthers were the worst team in the NFL last year, and the Buccaneers and Saints have similar issues as the Steelers.
For as talented as Fields is, he hasn’t proven much in the league yet. He doesn’t need to go to a place and start immediately. What he needs to do is learn and build back his confidence. It’s not like he’s buried on the depth chart. He’s the clear No. 2 behind Russell Wilson, and if there are any struggles or injuries, he’ll be the next man up. The Steelers may not have a hotshot offensive head coach, but they do have one of the most established cultures in the league. That might matter more for a player like Fields.
Along with the additions along the offensive line, the Steelers also brought in a new offensive coordinator in Arthur Smith, who had much success in that role with the Tennessee Titans. The Steelers made steps toward being a better offense, so they won’t be as bad as Cowherd makes them out to be. Maybe none of the changes they made will work, but at least they made an effort. Also, Fields seems to be ready to compete with Wilson, so it’s not like he’ll be sitting on his hands. This season means a lot for his career, and he knows that.
