As Russell Wilson inches closer to his full return from injury, Justin Fields continues to take advantage of the extra first-team reps at practice. Wilson was given pole position and received the vast majority of the starting reps throughout the spring. There was no reason to believe that would change. Even Fields didn’t expect starting reps early on in camp, confirming what we already knew in an interview after Sunday’s practice.
“I’m just trying to take advantage of each and every rep that I get. I know that if he wasn’t hurt, then I wouldn’t be in this position,” Fields said of receiving more reps in Wilson’s absence in a video posted by YardBarker’s Aaron Becker on X. “It’s just opportunities for me. I’m just trying to take full advantage of it, to be honest with you. I’m trying to approach every practice the same and get better each and every day. Just build that chemistry.”
Fields told the media during one of the OTA practices in the spring that he did not come to Pittsburgh with the mindset of sitting on the bench. Back when he was traded, reports indicated that the Bears had other—potentially better—offers on the table, but Fields and his agent specifically wanted him in Pittsburgh. They would have done that knowing that Wilson had signed several days prior.
This is a contract year for Fields, so there would have been at least a little strategy involved with that decision. It would be reasonable to assume that Fields and his agent saw Pittsburgh as his best chance of either winning a starting job or at least getting some playing time to boost his earning potential next offseason.
The first several days of training camp were a little up-and-down for Fields as he struggled with inconsistent play. But he also showed flashes of the arm talent and athleticism that we all knew he had coming into Pittsburgh. The last several days have been much better. His connection with George Pickens and the other receivers has been growing. The offense has been giving the defense a run for their money in the various 11-on-11 and seven shots sessions at practice each day. Mind you, this is expected to be among the top defenses in the league.
Here is one of the highlights of today’s practice, per Alex Kozora on X.
And a clip of a touchdown pass to Van Jefferson during seven shots today, posted by Jefe777_ on X
Reports state optimism for Wilson’s return to practice this upcoming week, so that will be the next major milestone in this competition. Has Fields done enough to make this a true competition and split starting reps with Wilson the rest of camp? There is certainly a better chance of that than there was just a couple of weeks ago.
Fields has built up a lot of support amongst the Steelers’ fanbase, and they haven’t exactly been shy at voicing their opinion in stadiums over the last few years. If nothing else, Fields has applied an extraordinary amount of pressure on Wilson to match his stellar performance over the rest of camp. If he doesn’t, things could get interesting.
