The Pittsburgh Steelers finally play football today, and while it’s only a preseason game, it still gives fans an opportunity to see some of the team’s new players. Unfortunately, Russell Wilson isn’t going to be playing tonight, but Justin Fields will be. While Wilson is still listed as the starter on the depth chart, NFL insider Dianna Russini believes keeping him in that spot could be the worst mistake possible for Mike Tomlin.
Appearing on Ryen Russillo’s podcast, Russini spoke about the Steelers quarterback situation.
“From what I was told, Justin Fields has an opportunity to become the starter,” Russini said. “There is a world we live in where Week 1, he’s named the starter because you look at it from Mike Tomlin’s perspective. It feels as if he’s out here balling, but he wants to stick with Russ [Wilson] just because he’s the veteran guy.
“That’s the worst thing he could possibly do as a coach, knowing that everyone is seeing what Justin’s doing on the field. You have to play the hot hand. You have to play the guy that’s earned it.”
Saying Fields still has an opportunity to win the starting job lines up with other reports that have come out recently. He has reportedly impressed in camp so far, so maybe Wilson’s job is less safe than it first appeared. An impressive showing in tonight’s game could really pour gas on the fire Fields has started.
After the past two years, Tomlin has become very familiar with playing veteran quarterbacks rather than a younger player. In 2022, he stuck by Mitch Trubisky to start the season, even though he was struggling, and rookie Kenny Pickett was supposed to be pro-ready. It was Tomlin’s first time really having to deal with that kind of situation, though, so he should get cut a little slack for waiting too long to throw Pickett in.
However, last year’s quarterback situation was even more of a mess. Pickett got hurt, but even before the injury, he did not look like a starting-caliber quarterback. Trubisky became the starter in his place, and Tomlin once again left him in that role for too long. Trubisky looked awful in the two games he started.
Meanwhile, when Mason Rudolph took the starting job from Trubisky, he at least looked competent sometimes. He even helped the Steelers get into the playoffs. He wasn’t incredible, but he was a significant upgrade over Pickett and Trubisky.
It seemed like Tomlin had learned his lesson at that point, though, because even when Pickett was healthy, Rudolph remained the starter. He did ride with the hot hand. Therefore, it’s likely that he’s trying to get out in front of that issue now with Wilson and Fields. He doesn’t want to repeat the Trubisky and Pickett situation from 2022.
If Fields plays well tonight and in any other preseason action he sees, he could force the Steelers to consider making him the starter. Wilson would also likely have to play poorly, but he hasn’t been great over the past few years, so that isn’t unlikely. Either way, Tomlin has enough experience at this point to better understand how to handle a quarterback competition. We’ll see after tonight how his decision is affected.
