From the offseason to now, one area of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ roster has been talked about endlessly: the quarterbacks. Both Russell Wilson and Justin Fields have battled it out for the starting job ever since being acquired. A calf injury to Wilson gave Fields the chance to start through the first six games, and he played well.
However, we all knew head coach Mike Tomlin would have to decide once Wilson was healthy. As he likes to do, Tomlin has remained non-committal when it comes to naming a full-time starter. Last week, Wilson returned to practice for the first time since the regular season began. Tomlin still started Fields, citing Wilson’s ‘rust’ as the reason. Now, with Wilson fully healthy, Tomlin’s going to have to make a decision.
As Russell Wilson shakes some rust off, Tomlin is keeping the decision regarding Sunday night’s starter up in the air. Wilson has started taking some first-team reps this week. He’s still splitting them with Fields though, as Tomlin hasn’t named the starter just yet.
Some in the NFL media think that isn’t a very good idea. One analyst with that belief is Fox Sports’ Emmanuel Acho. He expressed that feeling on ‘The Facility’ on Wednesday.
“I think it’s dumb,” Acho said. “Here’s what I think is dumb, is that he’s [Wilson] only getting some. Give him all first-team reps. Give him no first-team reps. But don’t give him ‘some’ first-team reps… You can’t be almost a starter in the NFL. When I’m thinking about this, I hate that you’re giving him some first-team reps. Justin Fields is not good enough to sacrifice first-team reps… But Russell Wilson is not fresh enough to get ‘some’ first-team reps. So either give Russ all of the first-team reps or give him none of the first-team reps.”
Acho makes a decent argument here. He’s pretty upfront about it, but it does have merit. His main point is clearly that it doesn’t make sense to split first-team reps between two players. That’s a decent point, as splitting reps like that could cause a team to be less familiar with Wilson if he does earn the starting nod, which seems more likely as the week goes on.
He also argues that Fields isn’t good enough to sacrifice first-team reps. Fields has been decent in 2024, throwing for five touchdowns and just one interception. He has also had five rushing touchdowns this season, giving him 10 touchdowns and one turnover. That’s hard to argue with. However, it could also be argued that the Steelers’ offense just isn’t good enough to contend with the top teams in the AFC. Some think Russell Wilson could change that, and Acho also holds that belief.
We’ll have to see what happens with the situation. Tomlin will have to announce a starter soon, with their game against the New York Jets just days away. For now, Acho thinks the Steelers should stop splitting reps until they decide on a starter.
