The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t play QB Russell Wilson in their preseason opener against the Houston Texans, but head coach Mike Tomlin said after the 20-12 loss to Houston that Wilson will play in the team’s second preseason game.
“I do,” Tomlin said via Steelers.com during his post-game press conference when asked if he anticipates Wilson playing against the Buffalo Bills next week.
Wilson has ramped up his participation in practice after missing time early in training camp due to a calf injury he suffered during the team’s conditioning test. With just three preseason games, the second game is one where the starters usually get a decent amount of run, and with Wilson QB1 on the depth chart, it’s no surprise that the Steelers will look to get him on the field.
Pittsburgh will have a joint practice with the Bills on Aug. 15 before theeir game at Acrisure Stadium on Aug. 17, which will likely be the first time we see Wilson against another opponent in a Steelers uniform. We’ll likely hear more from Tomlin this week on how much Wilson and the other starters will play against Buffalo.
Justin Fields started for Pittsburgh against the Texans tonight, and he went 5-of-6 for 67 yards, although there were two fumbled snaps on bad exchanges between him and Nate Herbig. Tomlin said that both Herbig and Fields were responsible for the issues with the snap exchanges, and Fields also didn’t put any points on the board leading Pittsburgh’s offense. Kyle Allen was the only other quarterback who took snaps under center for Pittsburgh tonight with John Rhys Plumlee getting work on special teams.
The expectation remains that Wilson will be Pittsburgh’s starter come Week 1, but he’ll need to continue to compete. A good performance against the Bills next week could go a long way toward solidifying him as Pittsburgh’s starter. This week was the first time Wilson got significant work in 11v11 and Seven Shots during training camp, so it’s clear that he’s getting healthier. With another week of practice, Wilson should be 100 percent.
Pittsburgh’s offense struggled to get going today, and the hope is that the group will look better with Wilson leading the charge against a Bills team that ended the Steelers’ season last season in the playoffs.
