Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers are increasingly incorporating QB Justin Fields into their game plan. Over the past two weeks, he has played 10 snaps though they have achieved very mixed results. At the end of the day, the Steelers are banking on the change-up being a bigger problem for defenses than it is for them.
“It’s a component of what we do. I’ve been pretty clear about [the fact] that once Justin [Fields] got healthy, he’s a viable and capable dude”, Tomlin said yesterday, via the Steelers’ website. “It’s something that our opponents have to be aware of. When we use it or how much we utilize it will be dependent on plans week to week.
When asked if changing the quarterback out mid-drive could disrupt the offense’s rhythm, Tomlin conceded the point. “Certainly there’s a potential of that, but we’re more excited about the challenges that it presents the opposing unit”, he said about subbing in Fields for Russell Wilson. “And I think that’s reflective of our general attitude. We live in our hope as opposed to our fears”.
The Steelers have mostly used Justin Fields on second, third, or fourth down so far, rarely starting a new set of downs, never mind a series. Of course, we’re still talking about a very small sample size, so we can’t draw any satisfactory conclusions.
But still, we know that the change can disrupt things. Even Justin Fields acknowledged they had some communication issues on his first official play. He was going to play earlier in the game but a pre-snap penalty made the Steelers change course.
As for who makes the call about when Justin Fields plays, Mike Tomlin said either he or OC Arthur Smith have that authority. “It can happen from either party and has, certainly”, he said. Or at least, Smith can go up to Tomlin and say, “Hey, I’d like to put Fields in”.
The Steelers want to use Fields because he adds a rare athletic dimension at quarterback. But defenses did not appear to respect him as a quarterback when in the game, and when he did throw on a critical third down against the Browns, it didn’t work. Tomlin insists that he believed in the call, but many questioned the decision.
Sometimes things work out the way the Steelers envisioned it, of course. Justin Fields broke off a 30-yard run in the last game though he kicked himself for not scoring. He said after the game that he needs to do a better job of keeping himself loose on the sideline.
That would probably be a good idea in case he has to throw the ball, too. And if the Steelers really want this to work, they are going to have to get Fields passing out of this package with some success, I think. Because if defenses don’t respect the chances of a pass, they’re going to sell out for the run.
