Mike Tomlin left the door open for Justin Fields to be involved in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive game plan this week against the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. Fields is healthy and ready for whatever role they give him.
“I’m not sure,” Fields said when asked if he knows how involved he’ll be in the offense in a video posted by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Brian Batko on X. “We’ll see.”
Chances are pretty good that he does have an idea at this point, but of course he isn’t going to let that information out just a few days before the playoff game.
His involvement in the offense has been kind of a mystery this season. You would think that six starts at the beginning of the season would have accelerated his inclusion into the game plan as a package quarterback off the bench, but Fields didn’t log his first snap off the bench until four weeks into Russell Wilson’s starting tenure. Part of that is because he missed a game with injury, but some of that also has to do with the Steelers’ plan for him.
Tomlin told the media after the Steelers’ win over the Washington Commanders in Week 10 that there was a plan to use him, but the flow of the game never quite allowed for it. They then debuted him off the bench the following week against the Ravens.
In total, Fields has only appeared in four games since Wilson became the starter. That means there have been four games in which he did not play while suited up and active and three total games missed due to injury. Perhaps the injuries set the package of plays back further than we realize, but Fields did start six games. The Steelers should have a pretty good idea of what works and what doesn’t.
Fields’ most recent injury was an abdominal one suffered in Week 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles. That caused him to miss the next two games as an inactive, but he told the media “I’m good.”
Regardless of if he plays, Tomlin telling the world that they are open to him playing forces the Ravens to prepare for both quarterbacks.
“I think me just being able to utilize with my legs and stuff like that just causes the defense to have to watch film on that,” Fields said. “Really waste time on it, whether we’re planning on running it or not. I think it’s definitely a plus.”
Mike Hilton admitted that they spent a lot of time preparing for both quarterbacks the first time the Steelers and Bengals faced off. Fields only saw two snaps that game, but that doesn’t change the fact that they spent valuable practice time preparing for him.
The Steelers could benefit from a change of pace on offense. The last five games have not been playoff-caliber from Wilson and the offense. Even if Fields only sees five to seven snaps in advantageous scenarios, that could provide a big boost to the offense. The consecutive failed plays on 3rd and 4th and 1 last week come to mind, for example.
“If my number’s called, I’ll be ready to go,” Fields said.
