The Pittsburgh Steelers revamped their quarterback room this offseason, trading for Justin Fields after the team signed Russell Wilson and traded away Kenny Pickett. There’s been a lot of debate whether Fields or Wilson will be the starter for Pittsburgh this season despite Mike Tomlin putting Wilson in “pole position” heading into OTAs and training camp. Former New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees, who played with Taysom Hill when the Saints had a package of plays for Hill in New Orleans, thinks the Steelers can use Fields in a similar way.
Appearing on The Dan Patrick Show, Brees said he’s excited to see how the Steelers use Fields this year.
“Justin Fields obviously has an incredible skillset. And I’m excited to see how Pittsburgh uses him this year. I would actually envision a situation where it’s almost a Taysom Hill-type package like we had in New Orleans, where Russell Wilson is your starting quarterback, Justin Fields is getting 7-10 snaps a game. You know how problematic that would be for a defense, right? He can come in and do many things explosively in the run game and the pass game.”
We don’t know yet if the Steelers will have a package of plays for Fields, and there’s a chance the team just views him as a backup quarterback option. But given his athleticism and ability as a runner, there’s a chance that the Steelers could use Fields in certain packages. Hill with the Saints is probably the best example of how the Steelers could use Fields in a limited role without him being the starter, but Hill also lines up out wide as a tight end in some packages.
The Steelers are unlikely to use Fields as a receiver the way that the Saints use Hill, but they can use him at quarterback in some short-yardage packages as a runner or utilize him as a passer too, if they so choose. Fields has over two years of experience as a starting quarterback, so it’s not an unfamiliar position for him to be in if he does play a handful of snaps for the Steelers. The question will become whether taking Wilson out will impact his rhythm, but if it’s in the game plan, which we’ll likely find out during training camp and the preseason, he should find a way to figure it out.
It’s going to be interesting to see if the Steelers do indeed utilize Fields in any sort of specialized role, and if they do, how often he’s used. The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly doesn’t think the Steelers will have packages for Fields, but his athletic tools certainly leave the possibility open if the Steelers want to play him regularly and not just use him as a backup.
We have a few short months until training camp starts, and voluntary OTAs begin next week, so we’ll likely get a clearer idea of what sort of plans the Steelers have for Fields. How the Steelers will use Fields is one of the biggest questions heading into the season, and we’re closer to getting an answer on if he’s going to have a role in Pittsburgh’s offense beyond just being the backup quarterback.
