With Lamar Jackson and Justin Fields, the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers will unite two of the most athletically gifted quarterbacks in NFL history in one stadium. While Fields is no longer starting, there is a possibility he sees the field in some capacity. Either way, Steelers DC Teryl Austin is glad to have him this week preparing for Jackson.
But wait a minute, didn’t Steelers HC Mike Tomlin say there is no benefit to the Steelers in having Justin Fields to prepare for Lamar Jackson? Yeah, he did, although it was a flippant answer at the end of his press conference. Austin provided more nuance and raised a valid point.
“It does” help the Steelers’ defense prepare for Jackson by having Fields, Austin said, via transcript. “When you don’t have anybody in your program like that, when you want to run the ball a lot of times, you put a receiver in there to play quarterback, and everybody knows, ‘Hey, they’re going to run the ball.’ This time if you keep the quarterback in, you can run all the offense and do all the different things that they do without giving it away, and I think that helps our defense. That’s where Justin will come in in that regard.”
Over the years, the Steelers haven’t had to use too many wide receivers to simulate Lamar Jackson in practice. They had Joshua Dobbs to help them out with that here and there, or would have a mobile guy on the practice squad. Having Justin Fields is obviously the closest thing they’ve ever had to Jackson as a preparatory option.
Not that there is ever a truly adequate way to prepare for Lamar Jackson, which is the point Tomlin was really trying to make. Of course, it’s better to have a quarterback simulate a quarterback than a wide receiver. You get a more realistic simulation for your defense if they have to worry about a pass.
But while the Steelers have beaten Jackson three times out of four, that doesn’t mean they’re in for smooth sailing. Justin Fields or not, Jackson has proven time and again that he can win with his legs. The Steelers did a great job containing Jayden Daniels last week, but Jackson is in a class of his own. That’s why he is Mr. Jackson.
Mr. Jackson is racing toward his third MVP award, at that, including his second in a row. On the season, he is second in passing yards with 2,669. He also leads the league with 24 touchdowns and 8.3 yards per attempt. All the while, he has thrown just two interceptions, the Steelers relying on turnovers. So will Justin Fields help for Sunday? Well…maybe a little bit. But don’t count on past history to secure a victory in the present.
