PITTSBURGH — NFL Network has reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers are set to bench Justin Fields and start Russell Wilson at quarterback this week against the New York Jets, in a report timed exactly with the start of head coach Mike Tomlin’s press conference on Tuesday.
At said press conference, Mike Tomlin did not say that Russell Wilson will start this week. NFL Network is not typically wrong about such things. So what gives?
Let’s start with what Tomlin did say. I’ve highlighted eight things that he either said or very strongly implied.
1) Wilson is healthy. Not just healthy enough to play. But fully, completely healthy.
“He proved his health last week,” Tomlin said. “He proved his ability to protect himself, to move appropriately within the pocket, to not be limited schematically in terms of some of the things we are capable of doing or wanted to do. Those things had to happen before we could seriously consider him and his talents and that happened a week ago.”
The not being limited schematically part is key there. Remember that in the preseason, when Wilson played, he was asked not to run with the ball at all. That will need to be a part of the Steelers offense, no matter who the quarterback is.
That being said, 2) Wilson does not run like Fields does.
“No, he does not,” Tomlin said. “Justin’s legs are an x-factor. … His ability to use his legs, by design and by ad-lib, was a significant component of that game. He rushed for 50-plus yards and two touchdowns in game. We’re appreciative of that. We’re appreciative of how he’s taking care of the ball. But we’re just looking at all of the people at our disposal the same way that we do at any position.”
So what does that mean for the offense? Tomlin didn’t really say. Obviously, the Steelers can’t call all the same things for Wilson that they could for Fields. Fields’ running ability has been a significant part of the offense. So much that Tomlin 3) didn’t rule out the idea of playing both of them.
“Certainly there’s a scenario,” he said. “There was a scenario where that could have occurred last week.”
He’s also hinting at something else there. Tomlin didn’t go into last week with a two quarterback plan, clearly. So he’s saying 4) there was a chance Fields could have been benched last week.
Fields 5) has not been particularly good as a thrower. Of all the quarterbacks that won their games this week, he had the fewest passing yards. He’s currently 22nd in passing and 19th in adjusted net yards per attempt.
“We’ve been really good at times, but not to be confused with great,” Tomlin’s said. “This is a competitive league, man. We’re trying to position ourselves to be that team. We’ve got a player with talent we haven’t had an opportunity to play, so we’re gonna potentially explore those things.”
So what now? 6) Both quarterbacks are going to practice this week, and both will work with with the first team.
“Both guys at the quarterback position are scheduled to work [Wednesday],” Tomlin said. “We’ll just walk it day by day, all geared toward putting ourselves in best position to win the football game.”
When will Tomlin make a decision? Rest assured, 7) he’s in no hurry. Tomlin clearly likes the idea of the Jets having to prepare for both players, calling the potential changes to his offense a “cute part of the discussion.”
“I don’t know,” he said when pressed on when he’ll announce a starter. “Closer to game time.”
Bet on Friday after practice. Also, no matter what he decides, 8) it’s not going to be some kind of permanent designation.
“No, that would not be fair to say,” he said when asked if the winner of the completion this week will remain the starter.
What about what went unsaid? I’ll try these on for size.
Justin Fields has not been good enough to secure the starting quarterback job. He’s won games, but he has been a mediocre passer, and you can’t go into the postseason in an AFC loaded with quarterback talent and thinking running alone is going to get you there.
The Steelers also aren’t completely sure that Russell Wilson is going to be better. There’s no talk of a competition at outside linebacker this week as Alex Highsmith returns from injury to supplant Jeremiah Moon. There won’t be any conversations about Tyler Matakevich taking over for Patrick Queen when he gets off the IR. If Russ was clearly better, or if he was clearly worse, there would be no competition. It would just be the way it is.
Mike Tomlin does not care about the future. These Steelers are not likely to win a Super Bowl, no matter who plays quarterback. You could make the argument that the best way for them to get in a place to do so in the near future is for Fields to develop into the kind of quarterback that can lead them there. If the future matters, it’s an easy choice. Go with Fields.
But that’s not what Tomlin is doing. The Steelers have made it pretty clear that they’re heard the noise from the fanbase, and they’re trying hard to win a playoff game this year, whether or not they have any realistic chance of winning a Super Bowl. So Tomlin and company are all in on 2024.
Where does that leave us?
It seems likely that Wilson will start this week. It also seems plausible that Fields could have a package of plays, potentially work in the red zone, and that whoever starts will have a fairly tight leash.
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