PITTSBURGH — While it has appeared obvious for several days Russell Wilson will make his first start as the quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers this week, coach Mike Tomlin declined to make it official Friday.
When asked who will start Sunday night against the New York Jets, the coach said he’s keeping the quarterback decision “in-house.”
However, about 10 minutes later, receiver George Pickens made the announcement for his coach when he said he’s been throwing with Wilson, “more than usual because it’s his first start.”
At the end of the preseason, Tomlin initially named Wilson his starter following a so-called training camp competition. However, when Wilson re-injured his calf on the Thursday ahead of the opener, the Steelers turned to Justin Fields.
In Wilson’s absence, Fields led Pittsburgh to a 4-2 record. His completion percentage (66.3) and quarterback rating (93.9) are career highs, as Fields has thrown for five touchdowns, rushed for five and thrown just one interception.
In the last two weeks — as Wilson has gotten healthier and neared a return — Fields needed to have his best games to hang onto the job. Even though he went 1-1 in the last two, they were arguably his two least consistent performances as he posted his two lowest completion percentages (55.6 and 58.3) of the season.
“Justin has been really good. We’ve been really good at times — but not to be confused as great,” Tomlin said Tuesday. “This is a competitive league. We’re trying to position ourselves to be that team.”
On Tuesday, Tomlin opened the door for Wilson to start when he declared him “in contention” to play.
When Fields spoke with the media Thursday, it started to become very clear he wasn’t expecting to start. He was asked if it would be disappointing to sit after playing well through the first six games and answered candidly.
“I don’t think I played good enough if I’m being real with you,” Fields said. “If I’m being real with myself, if I did play well enough, I don’t think there would be any sort of (question) who should be playing, who should not.
“At the end of the day, we got a few wins. Of course I’m glad about that, but there’s areas I can be better at. I’m just going to continue to work on those and continue to get better.”
Wilson himself also gave several indications he was expecting to play. He was active last week in Las Vegas as the No. 2 quarterback but asked about the game against the Jets, he said “It’s the first game of the year for me.”
Tomlin did acknowledge Friday the Steelers “certainly” could play both quarterbacks. Right now, the only question surrounding the situation is how much (if at all) Fields will play Sunday.
With the long-awaited quarterback decision finally settled, now comes the interesting part. If Tomlin is expecting quarterback play that’s better than just good, there’s not necessarily a guarantee he’ll get it from Wilson after two tumultuous seasons with the Denver Broncos.
That said, Wilson has been the more accurate passer and has the benefit of 13 years of NFL experience. Time will tell if this change helps the offense reach another level and how Pittsburgh will navigate what’s sure to be a unique quarterback situation the rest of the season.
Required reading:
- Even if Russell Wilson starts, this won’t be the last we hear from Justin Fields
- After Steelers missed out on Davante Adams, where do they go from here at WR?
(Photo: Joe Sargent / Getty Images)
