Justin Fields appears to be moving toward solidification of the Steelers’ starting quarterback job, one he couldn’t win during training camp. Pittsburgh is 3-0, and Russell Wilson saw a calf injury deny him the possibility to start a starter run with the team. Wilson stays limited in practice.
While Mike Tomlin is slow-playing this matter, it will be somewhat difficult to see the Steelers pivot back to Wilson after Fields piloted the team to a few wins. This all the time loomed as a possible scenario, despite the Steelers’ offseason party line favoring the more experienced option. Wilson’s status modified when the Steelers acquired Fields days after officially signing the Thirteenth-year veteran, and the Bears helped steer the younger passer to Pittsburgh.
Even though it stays farfetched the Bears turned down a notably higher offer to send Fields to the Steelers, they’re still believed to have done right by their three-year starter to maneuver him to a team and not using a solidified QB1. Fields confirmed the Bears helped him out by trading him to the Steelers, indicating on Cam Heyward‘s Not Just Football podcast the NFC North team gave him a likelihood to decide on his destination. Months before losing a higher-profile trade sweepstakes that featured Brandon Aiyuk ultimately preferring to stick with the 49ers, the Steelers benefited from a somewhat similar process — in a deal that only cost them a conditional sixth-round pick.
With Wilson looking prone to be Pittsburgh’s backup when he returns to full strength, Fields will probably cost the Steelers a 2025 fourth as a result of playing greater than 51% of the team’s offensive snaps this season. The previous first-round pick preferred this example to others the Bears entertained, telling Heyward other teams with solidified starters pursued him. The Chargers and Ravens were two of those, while Fields added the Raiders — who didn’t have a surefire starter at that time — were also in the combo.
Bears GM Ryan Poles confirmed other trade paths existed, and Fields was intrigued by the Falcons, Vikings and Raiders before QB dominoes fell. The Raiders, who hired two-year Bears OC Luke Getsy to be their play-caller (after Kliff Kingsbury backed out), were viewed as unlikely to make a serious Fields pursuit in February but then — minutes before agreeing to terms with Gardner Minshew — were reconnected to the Ohio State product. Minshew heading to Las Vegas on a two-year, $25MM deal undoubtedly helped push Fields to Pittsburgh, regardless that the previous needed to win a months-long competition to win the Raiders’ starting job.
The 25-year-old passer said his Bears exit interview gave him the impression he could be traded, with QB recalling Bears brass telling him they faced a “tricky situation” as a result of holding the No. 1 overall pick for a second straight 12 months. This reminded of Poles’ comments to the media shortly after Chicago’s season ended. As expected, the Bears passed on a fourth Fields season by giving the Steelers the fifth-year option decision. Pittsburgh declined the choice, however the team is focused on a post-2024 relationship with the dual-threat QB. Although immediate interest in a post-2024 Wilson contract surfaced as well, that seems less prone to come to pass based on this season’s early arc.
The Chargers received inquiries from the Patriots and Vikings on Justin Herbert but shot them down, leaving little question about their QB plan in Jim Harbaugh‘s first season. The Ravens’ penchant for employing dual-threat Lamar Jackson backups — from Robert Griffin III to Tyler Huntley — would have made Fields an interesting piece in Baltimore, but he would have seen no path to a starting job there. Every non-Steelers team to debate Fields with the Bears viewed him as a backup, and the QB told Heyward he was concerned concerning the musical chairs game that featured a couple of spots filled in the course of the legal tampering period. (The Steelers obtained Fields five days into free agency.)
So far as Fields’ Steelers situation goes, he may not only to be moving toward being the team’s starter but reaching a spot where the club would allow him to play through mistakes (relatively than receiving a fast hook), ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes. Wilson, who battled injuries in Denver, just isn’t yet moving well on his balky calf. This continues to present Fields a runway to win the long-term gig. Regardless that QBR ranks Fields twenty first, he has done enough to maintain a defense-powered Steelers team in games.
Fields’ low-octane work doesn’t completely slam the door on Wilson, so it’ll be a situation to observe for some time. This might turn into awkward when Wilson recovers, because the potential Hall of Famer was given some early assurances upon signing. However the vet’s calf injury allowed Fields extensive reps in training camp, where he impressed. And he has continued to realize ground within the weeks since, leading the youngest of Pittsburgh’s passers to the precipice of a QB1 announcement.
