Despite just scoring one touchdown through two games, Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith has liked what he’s seen out of quarterback Justin Fields. Pittsburgh is 2-0, and Fields has executed the game plan well even though his stats might not look all that impressive. In particular, Smith has been impressed with Fields’ deep-ball and his ability to stand in the pocket against the pass rush.
“He’s playing very smart football, situationally, understanding the plan, understanding the attack and what we’re trying to accomplish. And what has been encouraging to me has been his pocket presence. Like I said, he’s been standing in there when the pockets gotten dirty, when they brought heat. I thought he’s made some big-time throws down the field. Again, some of those were called back, even some of those DPIs. I’ve thought the deep-ball accuracy was pretty damn good. You know, some other things we’ll keep pushing, but I’ve been very encouraged,” Smith said via transcript provided by the team.
Maybe the most impressive part of Fields’ first two weeks is how he’s operated despite rarely having a clean pocket. He has the lowest clean pocket rate in the NFL, and yet has only taken four sacks and hasn’t turned the ball over. For someone who came to Pittsburgh with the reputation of taking sacks and being turnover-prone, it’s been a revelation thus far.
And while Fields’ 273 passing yards through two games don’t jump off the page, his numbers would look better if two deep balls to George Pickens weren’t wiped out by penalties. In Week 1, Pickens was called for offensive pass interference on what would’ve been a big gain, and Fields had a 51-yard completion to Pickens wiped out in Week 2 due to a holding penalty on OT Broderick Jones. As Smith said, he also drew two defensive pass interference calls on what would’ve been explosive plays had they been completed, so the numbers could be better than what they look on paper.
The Steelers might turn to QB Russell Wilson when he returns to full health from his calf injury, but the Steelers have to be happy with what Fields has shown so far. It’s not easy to win on the road in the NFL, and Fields has done so in back-to-back weeks despite not preparing to start until the Thursday ahead of Week 1. As he continues to prepare as the starter and work with the first team, things should only look better, and he’s done everything Pittsburgh has asked of him so far.
Fields will face potentially his biggest test yet in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Chargers, who have Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack coming off the edge. If he can lead the Steelers to another win and a 3-0 record, it might be hard to turn away from him as Pittsburgh’s starter. He offers a lot of rushing ability and can extend plays, and so far, he’s played clean football and helped the Steelers play to their strengths and win games. Hopefully, he can continue to do so on Sunday.
