Between Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, the Pittsburgh Steelers have a decision to make. At least that’s what it might look like from the outside, and to be fair, Mike Tomlin fueled that fire. He may very well know exactly what his intentions are in advance, but he basically said, “stay tuned”. If former NFL WR Steve Smith ran the station, though, he knows which direction he would go.
“I’m going Justin Fields”, Smith said on NFL GameDay last night. “The Russell Wilson that we are holding on hope to, he went to the store, got cigarettes, and has not come back. Bottom line. He has not come back. And if you are gonna believe that Russell Wilson is that guy, he’s not”.
That’s a rather colorful way of saying Russell Wilson isn’t the same player he once was. But Justin Fields has never shown himself to be the player the Bears thought they were drafting, either. And he didn’t look like that hypothetical player yesterday in his debut with the Steelers, but Smith believes he has enough for the Steelers’ offense.
“Arthur Smith’s offense has never had a top-five quarterback. His offense is used to having guys that can move around. Marcus Mariota, some of those guys. Justin Fields gives them an opportunity”, he said, suggesting Wilson doesn’t have that necessarily mobility.
He may be right on that front by default just because of the current situation. Russell Wilson missed the opener because of his calf injury, which allowed Justin Fields plenty of first-team training camp reps. Who is to say that he will be ready to play next week?
Now, Smith was not advocating for Fields over Wilson because he’s a big believer in Fields. He knows Fields didn’t lead the Steelers to points Sunday in Atlanta, but he doesn’t think Wilson will, either. He does know we have a lot more tape on Wilson over the years, and he hasn’t been winning.
The Steelers named Russell Wilson their starter and captain, but calf tightness forced Justin Fields to start the Steelers’ opener. He managed to win, albeit without an offensive touchdown, doing just enough. Fields went 17-for-23 passing for 156 yards, rushing for 57 as Wilson watched closely from the sidelines.
Smith concedes that the Steelers will probably start Russell Wilson over Justin Fields next week, if healthy. But he doesn’t think that will improve their ability to score. “Absolutely not”, he said. Of course, the Steelers are trying to build a structure around their quarterbacks that doesn’t require that. If they can win with defense and ball control and time of possession, that’s enough.
Russell Wilson and Justin Fields are at very different phases of their careers yet are possibly in the same place. That is the Last Chance Saloon. If either Wilson or Fields fail in Pittsburgh, it may be their last credible shot at a starting job. Both of them know that, but only one of them can start. Steve Smith thinks it should be Fields because at least he has a potential future. Russell Wilson is apparently the Steelers’ deadbeat dad.
