PITTSBURGH — There’s one thing missing from the quarterback controversy that so many in the NFL are eager to concoct involving the Steelers: an alternative to Justin Fields, the current incumbent at the position.
Oh, future Hall of Famer Russell Wilson is here. He wore his No. 3 jersey over a set of shoulder pads in each of the first three games of the season, all wins coached by Fields. Wilson has been listed on the injury report every week with a calf issue and designated as the team’s emergency QB every Sunday.
Head coach Mike Tomlin met with him Tuesday morning to discuss how NFL Week 4 would go for him. A little later, after meeting with the usual gathering of Pittsburgh reporters, Tomlin suggested that no significant change had occurred in either Fields’ or Wilson’s positions.
“We’ll see where the week takes us,” Tomlin said. “If his availability or the quality of his participation in training improves, we will perhaps consider it later in the week. If not, it will not be considered and we will simply continue where we are currently. »
In his 18th season, Tomlin has always been obsessed with the weekly nature of the NFL challenge. It’s one of the defining characteristics of a career that has him ranked 6th in winning percentage among all coaches who have worked at least 15 seasons. And his impenetrable focus on ensuring the best effort possible on Sunday afternoon allows him to put larger questions, such as the identity of the quarterback who will lead the team through the championship run, on the back burner. AFC North.
Which is not a universally popular approach among those who publicly comment on the team. In this day and age, that might mean a gentleman on an afternoon sports talk show or someone speaking on Facebook or Twitter. On Tuesday, a voice on the radio cited what he claimed was Tomlin’s poor track record handling quarterbacks as evidence that he’s handling this situation poorly.
Justin Fields is still not “the starter”
This is only the third season since Ben Roethlisberger retired. The Steelers are a combined 22-15 since he last played. The Steelers have won games with four different QBs as they search for a firm fix at the position.
That includes a 3-0 record in 2024, which puts them among five teams undefeated this early in the season. That’s why it made sense for KDKA-FM reporter Jeff Hathorn to ask Tomlin, “What more do you need to see from Justin?” Why not make him the starting quarterback in the future?
“Because it’s not necessary,” Tomlin said. “I explained the variables of the week to you. That hasn’t changed. He will walk into this building with this mindset tomorrow. Sometimes in this business, a myriad of complex decisions must be made. I have learned to make them when appropriate. And there’s no need, since we’re sitting here right now. When Russ is at an appropriate point of health and we have a decision to make, I will make it and announce it and be transparent about it.
This seems like a careful and comprehensive answer.
The modern world of sports media doesn’t care much about nuance, however.
At some point, and we may already be past it, even a healthy Wilson won’t be able to dislodge Fields as “QB1.” Tomlin sees no value in publicly acknowledging this. Suggestions that this might help Fields improve ignore that he’s already improved week to week, to the point where he completed three brilliant, game-tying passes in a 20-10 win over the Chargers. Each had to be placed and timed precisely to ensure the ideal result.
Tomlin told the Jugo Mobile That level of accuracy is something the Steelers had observed while scouting him at Ohio State throughout the 2020 season. “That’s the case a lot with us,” Tomlin said. “Our interest in people in terms of professional staff often goes back to project evaluations. That was certainly an element of his game that was impressive in Columbus.
The first came on the team’s opening touchdown, a third-and-4 situation in the second quarter, when Fields’ placement of a throw to Scotty Miller’s outside shoulder allowed him to catch the ball, slide a tackler and pass in front of the first one. -marker down. The second came with the Steelers losing a field goal on third-and-15 in the third quarter, when Fields hit Calvin Austin in stride on a quick drive up the middle for 26 yards. And then there was his only touchdown pass, a catch-and-run from Austin in the fourth quarter, which had to be thrown just in time and on target to make it safe. Alohi Gilman couldn’t deflect or intercept it.
There was a general assumption that accuracy was an issue when Fields, the No. 10 overall pick in 2021 by the Bears, who was made available for a conditional sixth-round pick. He had thrown 30 interceptions in three seasons.
“Justin Fields has a good arm – and a good arm isn’t just about strength. You also have to have a consistent throwing motion to allow you to be accurate with your throws,” Chris Carter, host of the Locked On Steelers podcast, told TSN. “I think the biggest thing is he was in an offense where he had to move a lot faster than what he has to do with the Steelers. The Steelers are letting him lock in and stay focused on reading his keys and reacting to them.
“With Arthur Smith (as offensive coordinator), I think he was very good at saying: This is the plan; stick to the plan. On these pieces, we give you these looks: Look here, here, here where you are going. And Justin has a really good understanding of where he’s going with it…and how he adapts to the game. It’s another thing to know how to run these plays in different ways against different defenses.
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Russell Wilson still recovering
The Steelers signed Wilson in March with the intention of making him their starting quarterback. He is a future Hall of Famer with a Super Bowl ring, two Super Bowl appearances and nine Pro Bowls on his resume. His two years in Denver were a disappointment, but he has 26 touchdowns in 15 starts with the Broncos in 2023. Pittsburgh doesn’t think he’s washed up.
It’s not that his transition to the Steelers went poorly. It just didn’t go away. He injured his calf early in training camp in July, returned to play briefly on exhibition duty, then aggravated the problem heading into the opener in Atlanta.
Tomlin remained respectful of Wilson’s place in the game, as well as the arrangement that brought him to Pittsburgh, while the quarterback endured a frustratingly slow healing process. There would be no benefit to alienating Wilson, who remains a valuable alternative if Fields suddenly struggles or gets injured.
This can’t be easy for Wilson. He’s a champion who surely believes he could win these games with these Steelers if he were able to do so, and that he could thus describe the final seasons of his brilliant career. Keeping him engaged isn’t just a matter of diplomacy; Just over half of last season’s Week 1 starters maintained their position through all 17 games.
The Steelers may still need Wilson on the field to ensure continued success in 2024.
What they don’t need to do is make a statement before he’s healthy enough to make it.
