The Pittsburgh Steelers may have lost to the Indianapolis Colts to fall to 3-1, but there were still a few big positives to take away from the game. Through the first three weeks, Fields was mostly playing game manager and leaning on the defense and running game. Against the Colts, he was tasked with making a comeback after being down by 17 points.
He was one final mistake away from making that happen, getting the Steelers to within a field goal with the ball in their hands in the final two-plus minutes of the game.
Three-time Super Bowl champion and former New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi liked what he saw from Fields, and believes he proved something in the loss.
“They were behind, which is new, and Justin Fields showed that he can bring them back actually,” Bruschi said via ESPN’s First Take. “I mean, leading the team in passing and rushing, rushing for two touchdowns.”
The Steelers were down by 17 points after the first 18 minutes of the game. It was clear they weren’t going to be able to rely on a conservative game plan to secure victory. Fields needed to take over the game. In the second half, that is exactly what he did.
The Steelers had only scored three touchdowns all season, but Fields led three-straight touchdown drives in the second half to give the team an opportunity to win the game.
Starting with 5:49 remaining in the third quarter, Fields completed 10 passes for 172 yards and a touchdown. He also carried the ball 6 times for 41 yards and 2 touchdowns. He had three big plays on third downs, including 2 of the touchdowns and a 37-yard completion to George Pickens.
Unfortunately, a botched snap that Fields took 100-percent responsibility for did them in on their potential go-ahead drive as they were down by 3 points with one timeout and 2:39 remaining in the game. So Fields proved that he can get the Steelers back in games, but he didn’t overcome the final hurdle of actually completing the comeback.
In Fields’ career, with 42 starts, he has only led four game-winning drives and two fourth quarter comebacks. Given his 13-29 record as a starter, he has had plenty of opportunities to earn game-winning drives. For a variety of reasons, he hasn’t been able to. So the Steelers are left with mixed feelings on Fields. He proved he can take over a game and be a reason why the Steelers win, but he also failed to clear the final hurdle.
Mike Tomlin said he was appreciative of Fields’ fight, but “he and we were a little bit sloppy at times” to secure the win. With Russell Wilson reportedly very close to full health, that leaves a bit of a predicament with Wilson still listed as QB1 on the depth chart.
