If the Pittsburgh Steelers are holding a quarterback competition between Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, then it feels like a race—to the bottom. Combined, the two have played the majority of two preseason games and produced a combined three points. Both are former established starters, Wilson more so than Fields, but neither look like one at the moment.
Still, the Steelers have to choose between one of Wilson and Fields—or Kyle Allen, I suppose. That is what they have to work with, and they can’t realistically make a major change for 2024 now. While Fields has played the most due to Wilson’s calf injury, Booger McFarland hasn’t seen anything that tells him this is a different player than the one the Chicago Bears traded in March.
“If you’re looking at Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, … if I had to choose one to start, it would be Russell Wilson”, McFarland said on ESPN NFL Live Wednesday. “I would hope that at some point Russell’s experience and his ability to minimize the mistakes and minimize the turnovers would show up. Because the same flaws he has leaving the pocket and not reading defenses down the field, aren’t they the same flaws that Justin Fields [has]?”.
“Now, I don’t want to hear about Justin Fields’ athleticism”, McFarland went on. “That athleticism got him ran out of Chicago. At some point, at that position, you have to deliver the football down the field. And right now, neither one is doing a really good job of it”.
A 2021 first-round draft pick, Justin Fields went 10-28 as a starter for the Chicago Bears. He has been a full-time starter for the majority of his career but has missed some time due to injury. Owner of one of the fastest 40 times by a quarterback in Combine history, he has not been able to run away from his baggage.
It is true that the past month has fueled debate about whether the Steelers should start Fields over Wilson. One can argue, however, that that points to how poor the quality of quarterback play has been. Of course, the level of play looks worse if you only judge it by the preseason, where the offensive line has been dreadful as often as not.
Justin Fields has 2,220 career rushing yards and 14 touchdowns with a 53.4 run-success rate. He has proven many times that he is an effective runner, both on designs and scrambles. At times he also shows that his pocket mobility provides the platform for explosive-play throws down the field. That element is intriguing, but are the results there on the scoreboard or in the win column?
Those who watched both Russell Wilson and Justin Fields practice during training camp seem to have a different opinion. For Fields, that even includes skeptical beat writers who saw more out of him than they expected to see.
Yet the local belief that there is no competition between Russell Wilson and Justin Fields is much stronger than national. Most (though not all) local media agree that Wilson has been the starter from the get-go. The preseason has shown that Fields’ athleticism is certainly an advantage, but where did it get the Steelers? They still wound up punting all day long, though they got a good look at Cameron Johnston thanks to that.
