Early in training camp for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the talk of the new-look Black and Gold has centered on the quarterback position under longtime head coach Mike Tomlin.
With Russell Wilson missing the first four practices of training camp due to a calf injury suffered in the conditioning test while pushing a sled, fourth-year veteran Justin Fields has taken the QB1 reps in his absence.
To his credit, Fields has taken advantage, making some good plays in training camp so far. He’s had his struggles, but the skill set and the tantalizing traits have been on display, which has generated quite a bit of buzz regarding Fields being the Steelers’ starting quarterback.
Though Wilson returned in a limited fashion Tuesday in the first day of pads, the conversation regarding Fields as the starter isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
In fact, ESPN’s Louis Riddick took it a step further Wednesday morning on Get Up! on ESPN. He stated that if Fields can produce throwing the football the way that Ryan Tannehill did in new coordinator Arthur Smith’s offense in Tennessee, the Steelers could be playing in the AFC Championship Game this season.
“If he can have maybe that kind of renaissance in his career, although he’s so young in his career, the same way that Ryan Tannehill had the renaissance in his career when he was in Tennessee when he took over for Marcus Mariota and Arthur Smith was the offensive coordinator, that’s the vision he has. That’s what could happen to Justin Fields,” Riddick said, according to video via ESPN. “And I’ll tell you this: if Justin Fields can throw the football the way that Ryan Tannehill did in his first year and a half down in Tennessee and have that kind of effectiveness, Pittsburgh could be one of those teams that’s playing in that AFC title game.
“That’s the kind of vision that I believe they are having, if Justin winds up becoming that kind of player for them.”
If you recall, Tannehill went from an afterthought in Tennessee after some down seasons in Miami and turned into a good starting quarterback under Smith’s guidance. After taking over for Marcus Mariota midway through the 2019 season, Tannehill and the Titans went on a run that saw Tannehill win the AP’s Comeback Player of the Year in 2019 and saw the Titans make it all the way to the AFC Championship Game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Titans were a dominant rushing team under Smith that utilized play-action passing and bootlegs in the passing game to take advantage of the space and time created due to defenses focusing so much on RB Derrick Henry.
With Justin Fields in the fold in Pittsburgh, coupled with running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, Riddick believes the Steelers could replicate that under Smith. And if Fields, who has struggled as a passer in the NFL, were able to turn things around in Smith’s offense throwing the football, the Steelers’ offense could be incredibly hard to stop.
“They wanna bully people up front. Mike Tomlin said as such, and he drafted this year in order to be able to do that. And Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris along with Justin, if he is the quarterback, that’s a heck of a threat running the football with some of the horses they got coming off the line of scrimmage,” Riddick added regarding the Steelers’ offensive potential if Fields were under center. “But…look, I don’t think they’re trying to just be a regular-season team. They’re not just trying to win 11 games, maybe win the division, maybe make a Wild Card and then just get into the playoffs and then get stymied because they’re a very between-the-tackles, tight formations, running football team.
“I know this: Arthur Smith loves Justin’s all-around potential. He loves what he can do throwing the football. He believes the run game will open up the pass game.”
There is a lot to like with Fields and his skill set. He has a good arm, is a dynamic threat with the football in his hands and can really sling the rock from various arm angles. But there is a long way to go with him rebuilding himself overall as a solid starting quarterback.
He flashed quite a bit in Chicago, but struggled to find the consistency. Granted, Chicago wasn’t exactly a stable environment for him. The Bears didn’t do enough to put good pieces around him offensively, which forced him to try and do a lot. But bad habits were created, and he has to reset a bit.
The potential is there for Fields to be a franchise quarterback in Pittsburgh. The potential is there for him to revitalize Pittsburgh’s offense and have a big year under Smith’s guidance.
But we’re not even a week into training camp yet and the pads just came on. Let’s slow down just a bit and remember that we don’t know anything when it comes to training camp and preseason showings. Just recall last summer in case you forgot.
Fields might be the answer for the Steelers, but we’re a long, long way from figuring that out.
