The Pittsburgh Steelers had their best offensive output of the season in their 37-15 win over the New York Jets, which was the team’s first game with Russell Wilson at quarterback. Mike Tomlin made the decision himself to start Wilson and bench QB Justin Fields, who had started the first six games and led the team to a 4-2 record, and at least after Sunday night, it seems like it was a good one. Regardless, the Steelers wouldn’t be in this position, now at 5-2, without Fields, and T.J. Watt said the whole team is behind Fields and credited how he’s handled the situation.
“We’re all behind Justin too. We understand this is Mike T’s decision at the end of the day. We’re trying to do what’s best for our football team. Justin has handled everything exceptionally well, and that goes a long way in our locker room,” Watt said on ESPN’s SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt.
TE Pat Freiermuth also saluted Fields and talked about the character of this team and how much the players support Tomlin and each other.
“Credit to Justin, credit to Kyle [Allen], credit to everyone on offense, the whole team for trusting and believing in Coach T. Justin handled it great, they worked together, and it just kind of shows the character of the team we have, where we back the head coach, we back each other. It’s all about winning at the end of the day,” Freiermuth said on the NBC postgame show after Pittsburgh’s win.
It’s interesting how similar their two comments are, and it does go to show just how aligned this locker room is. Watt and Freiermuth are on different sides of the ball and have different roles, but both are leaders in Pittsburgh’s locker room. They know the importance of trusting their coach while at the same time having the back of everyone in the locker room.
For Fields, it’s a rare decision to bench a quarterback who’s been winning games, and it was certainly a risky choice to turn to Wilson. While he had to knock some rust off, Wilson put together a really solid game and the Steelers were clicking on all cylinders. And while Wilson played well, that shouldn’t take away anything that Fields did as Pittsburgh’s starter. Indeed, you can’t write the story of the 2024 Steelers without Fields’ success and four wins being a part of it.
It’s important for the locker room to continue to uplift him and make sure he doesn’t lose his confidence, especially because the Steelers might need him again this season or down the line. At the same time, they also need to support Wilson, who’s now QB1, and show faith in Tomlin’s decision. Against the Jets, the Steelers played some of the best complementary football they have all season and got a blowout win against a good team, so it makes it easier to keep the messaging positive. But this locker room seems to be a strong one, and it’s helped that guys like Freiermuth and RB Najee Harris have evolved in their leadership roles.
Hopefully, the good vibes can continue going forward as the Steelers look to continue to make a playoff push in the AFC.
