Things were getting a little uncomfortable for Mike Tomlin, Russell Wilson, and the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first quarter of the Sunday Night Football game against the New York Jets. Wilson was off to a slow start, and the boos started almost immediately, eventually shifting into chants for Justin Fields from the crowd. Cameron Heyward has a message for those Steelers fans.
“I just say be patient, man,” Heyward said via his Not Just Football podcast on YouTube. “Everything happens for reason. Trust the process, trust in the team. Trust that we have your best interest at heart. Trust in Russ. Trust in us. It’s not always gonna be what you want, but it’s what you need.”
Pretty quickly, those same fans who were booing Wilson were cheering him on as the Steelers routed the Jets, 37-15, in their biggest win in years.
To some degree, the Steelers absolutely had to know this was a possibility after the controversial move to bench a 4-2 starting quarterback in Justin Fields. Fans spent all week listening to just about every national media pundit say it was an unprecedented move that they disagreed with, so the first sign of struggles for Wilson was like blood in the water for fans who fell on the Fields side of the quarterback debate.
Mike Tomlin was fully prepared to absorb the negativity that came with making the decision, but he also didn’t just make the decision due to a promise or anything other than a commitment to winning games. Tomlin has talked about his mindset in the past, and how it is always focused on winning the next game. He has specifically said that his players work too hard for him to be thinking about anything other than winning the next game. Wilson was named the starter at the end of training camp for a reason, and it’s because Tomlin thought he gave them the best chance to win.
Thankfully this experiment had worked out exceedingly well by the end of the first game, but it was quite uncomfortable in the stadium for the first 30 minutes or so.
Heyward had more words for people who have knee-jerk reactions to everything.
“Those keyboard warriors, man…Just be patient,” Heyward said. “Trust the team for making decisions because the way y’all talk, we wouldn’t have a football team in about a year or less than that because we’re so quick to jump off ship. You lose one game, then it’s like ‘Oh my gosh the season’s over.’ ”
This isn’t to be confused with the Steelers thinking they are sitting in a great position or deserve more respect because they are 5-2.
“Who gives a damn about 5-2?” Heyward said. “We’ll talk at the end of the season.”
They are very much focused on winning in the playoffs, not just in the regular season. That being said, Heyward clearly felt the need to defend Wilson after a somewhat embarrassing display from the fan base last Sunday.
Hopefully his big first game has silenced the critics and bought him some breathing room for the foreseeable future, but the backup quarterback is always the most popular guy on the team. That is something the Steelers will have to manage for the rest of the season.
