While Mike Tomlin has been steadfast throughout the offseason that Russell Wilson is in “pole position” for the starting quarterback job, he still hasn’t committed to naming Wilson the starter over Justin Fields. Wilson started Saturday and played just one series, leading a touchdown drive in Pittsburgh’s preseason finale against the Detroit Lions, but Tomlin told reporters after the game that the decision of who will start Week 1 will come at the end of the week.
“We have three days of Steelers vs. Steelers work, and why not do it then?” Tomlin said via Steelers.com. “It kind of minimizes the Steelers vs. Steelers work when we start making decisions prior to the completion of that. We’ve got ample time to prepare for Atlanta and make any announcements regarding division of labor or pecking order or so forth, and so we’ll do it at the end of the work week.”
Tomlin praised both Fields and Wilson for their play against the Lions.
“They both moved the ball, they won possession downs, they were able to put the ball in the end zone, things we hadn’t done to this point sufficiently enough in the preseason,” he said.
Given the division of labor today, it’s hard to see Fields winning the starting job, but Tomlin won’t rush to make a decision until he sees them work internally for another week. The Steelers have never rushed to make decisions like this, and that’s still holding true now, even though all signs point to Wilson being the starter come Week 1.
Fields started Pittsburgh’s preseason opener against the Houston Texans with Wilson sidelined due to a calf injury, and he was able to get valuable first-team reps early in camp with Wilson sidelined. While he had impressive moments, he never truly seized the opportunity to potentially win the job, and the first preseason game included two sloppy exchanges with C Nate Herbig that led to fumbles.
We’ll ultimately see what the final decision is at the end of next week after Pittsburgh gets its work in, but it would come as a major surprise if Tomlin names Fields the starter. Tomlin said earlier in the offseason that the team has leaned on Wilson for his work off the field and pedigree and ability as a leader, and he looked solid in his final preseason action today. While he didn’t lead any scoring drives against the Buffalo Bills last week, Pittsburgh dealt with shaky offensive line play that hindered the offense.
Today, Wilson was able to connect with WR George Pickens on an explosive play and the team pulled him after just one series. That should signal the Steelers’ intention to keep him as their starter, but it’s not official yet. Fields will have a few more days to make a final push to start Week 1, as unlikely as it may seem.
