We might not have to wait until 2026 for Toy Story 5. Good Morning Football returned on Monday morning with a bang, and Kyle Brandt made one of the most apt comparisons I’ve ever heard when discussing the Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback room. Brandt compared Pittsburgh’s quarterback situation with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields to that of Buzz and Woody from the Toy Story franchise, saying that while Wilson is the old guard and has respect, Fields comes in as the shiny new object with all the impressive features. In the end, Brandt thinks that Buzz is going to beat out Woody as Mike Tomlin’s new favorite toy.
“You got Russell Wilson on the left, there’s a snake in my boot, and then that’s Justin Fields that comes in. When Buzz comes into Andy’s room, all the toys are like holy crap, wow, look at those wings, this is really fascinating. We respect you Woody, you got some skins on the wall Woody, you might be a Hall of Famer Woody, but look at these blinking lights in that shoulder can. It’s seductive, it’s impressive,” Brandt said.
He also predicted that Fields is going to start Week 1 after winning the job outright in camp.
“I think that Buzz Lightyear will be starting for the Pittsburgh Steelers Week 1,” Brandt said. “I think he’s gonna win the job.”
Wilson opened the door just a crack for Fields with his recent calf injury, as Fields has taken first-team reps for Pittsburgh’s first four training camp practices. The early reports are basically as expected. He’s shown some flashes but also had some bad moments, like his floater to Donte Jackson for an interception yesterday. While Buzz Lightyear was a really cool toy, in the original Toy Story he wasn’t as useful as some of the other toys because he was lacking intelligence, as he truly thought he was a Space Ranger. For all his tantalizing traits, like his speed and arm talent, Fields needs to show he can be useful by improving his processing, decision-making, and accuracy.
Wilson is reliable. You know he’s going to be accurate, you know he can manage the game and manage the offense, and he can still uncork one deep every now and then. But your upside with Wilson just might not be as high as your upside with Fields. And giving Fields time to work with the first team and take the majority of reps gives time for his intriguing, or as Brandt called them, seductive, traits to impress the coaching staff.
Mike Tomlin said that Wilson should return to practice this week, and he’ll take back over first-team reps when he does. But it’ll be interesting to see if Fields can show enough in the rest of camp and the preseason to actually make this a competition. I’m not sure I agree with Brandt that Fields is going to win the job – after all, in the end Woody was the favorite toy and the only toy Andy was going to bring to college. I think the Steelers like the pedigree of Wilson and the fact that the team knows he can win in the postseason, and he’s not going to do anything that costs him the job, as long as his calf can hold up.
But the fact that Fields has been able to get first-team reps due to Wilson’s injury at least makes this somewhat of a conversation now, one that would’ve been easy to dismiss a week ago.
