It might have come in a loss, but Sunday’s performance from quarterback Justin Fields was one of the of his career and was easily the best performance of his tenure with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Fields completed 22-of-34 passes for 312 yards and a touchdown and added 10 carries for 55 yards and two scores in the 27-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
Though Fields had a killer mistake on a third-down scramble, losing 20 yards and fumbling the football away, taking the Steelers out of field-goal range, the fourth-year quarterback was very good after that third-quarter mistake.
So good, in fact, that it appears time for Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith to open the playbook up more for Fields — and earlier — at least according to NBC Sports’ Chris Simms.
On his “Chris Simms Unbuttoned” podcast Sunday night following the slate of Week 4 games, Simms stated that he wants to see Smith open things up earlier for Fields in games and to really trust the young quarterback because the “old Justin Fields” from Chicago is gone.
“I haven’t seen old Justin Fields in a while,” Simms said, according to video via NFL on NBC on YouTube. “He hits the open target. He doesn’t throw the ball into triple coverage. He’s doing the right thing. He continues to progress, and I think they’re gonna have to open up the vault with him a little bit.”
After four weeks as the Steelers’ starting quarterback and having put together two good performances in back-to-back weeks, it does appear that it might be time for Smith to open things up more for Fields, and earlier in games, too.
He’s making smart decisions with the football and is throwing accurate passes with great touch and placement, too. For the most part, he’s not trying to do too much and is making the plays that are there.
That’s incredibly encouraging. Outside of that third-down fumble, Fields isn’t trying to play hero ball like he had to do in Chicago, and it’s leading to some great plays and good performances overall. He single-handedly dragged the Steelers back into the game in Indianapolis with some clutch throws and big plays with his legs.
Fields is looking like a dynamic dual-threat quarterback, one who can be a franchise quarterback. That’s a testament to him and to Smith’s coaching on the offensive side of the football. It’s time to open it up a bit more though. The Steelers offense needs it.
