The Steelers are 4-2 with Justin Fields as their starting quarterback going into Sunday night’s big home game vs. the Jets. But that’s not stopping them from going back to their original QB plan for the 2024 NFL season: Starting Russell Wilson.
Wilson hasn’t been healthy enough to play with a calf ailment, but he no longer has an injury designation for Week 7. Coach Mike Tomlin had Wilson take first-team reps in practice and made the official decision to go with Wilson over Fields. The move might seem odd, given the team’s relative success with Fields.
Fields has thrown for five touchdowns to only one interception and has been rather efficient with a 93.9 passer rating. He also has rushed for 231 yards and another five TDs.
Despite those numbers, the Steelers had three good reasons to make the QB to Wilson from Fields sooner rather than later.
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1. The Steelers need to unlock the downfield passing game with George Pickens
The Steelers rank No. 28 in passing offense going into Week 7. They are calling run plays 52.9 percent of the time (second in the NFL) and are No. 9 in rushing offense, averaging 131.5 rushing yards per game. That sounds great, but it’s volume-based and would be a lot worse without Fields, as Pittsburgh is No. 24 in yards per carry at 4.0.
The Steelers have ground out victories against the Falcons, Broncos, Chargers, and Raiders. They were able to blow out Las Vegas because that defense was helpless vs. the run and Pittsburgh defense forced three turnovers, but the other games were nip-and-tuck.
In their losses to the Cowboys and Colts, the Steelers were burned by limited offense with Fields. The run-heavy formula also falls apart when the defense can’t come through in a close game, like what happened late against Dallas.
The Steelers were stuck with a specific way of winning games with Fields. Wilson gives them a lot more passing upside to help in more favorable passing matchups.
They also need someone who can consistently deliver the ball for field-stretching plays for Pickens, who led the league in averaging 18.1 yards per catch last season. Pickens has caught 26-of-44 targets for 363 yards for only 14.0 yards per catch this season. His effective, chain-moving catches have been down, with his receiving success-rate down to 47.7.
That’s not a surprise, as Pickens’ offseason connection was much better developed early with Wilson vs. Fields, who has missed most of the worthy downfield shots to Pickens. Wilson still has a strong downfield arm in relation to Fields. Wilson is a more natural deep-ball play-extender with his legs vs. Fields, who tends to take off and run.
In short, Wilson’s passing potential outweighs Fields’ supplemental rushing as a preferred means of the offense moving the ball.
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2. The Steelers’ offense with Justin Fields was getting a little stagnant in the red zone
The Steelers, despite that rushing volume and having Fields, are converting TDs at only a 50-percent rate in the red zone (No. 19 in the NFL). That’s only a slight improvement from last year’s three-QB, offensive disaster when they were No. 25 at 48.9 percent.
Fields is going back to his Bears’ bad habits of running whenever things break down. He’s also keeping the passing game compressed by settling for a higher short-area catch-rate with tight end Pat Freiermuth and running back Najee Harris.
The Steelers do have other wide receivers who can make plays besides Pickens. When Fields gets frustrated by not hitting Pickens, he can go into check-down, dink-and-dunk mode or improvise with the run. Wilson can still run when needed but also can push the ball more downfield and spread it around to more targets.
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3. The Steelers know they have a lot of tougher QB matchups ahead
The Steelers have wins over a rusty Kirk Cousins, a rookie Bo Nix, a banged-up Justin Herbert, and a shaky Aidan O’Connell. Dak Prescott and the Colts’ combination of Anthony Richardson and Joe Flacco got the better of the Steelers.
Not included in the early schedule are any division games, meaning a pair vs. Lamar Jackson’s Ravens and Joe Burrow’s Bengals are on the slate. They now will be facing the Jets’ Aaron Rodgers with Davante Adams right away in Week 7. Also outside the division, T.J. Watt and friends face Jayden Daniels, Jalen Hurts, and Patrick Mahomes.
The whole running-and-defense formula alone won’t work against better teams that will score more on the Steelers defense. The Steelers need a legitimate, savvy passer to give their offense a lot more juice, in turn taking the constant winning burden off the defense.
Fields is putting up defense QB stats, but here’s a reminder that wins aren’t the best measure. The Steelers need to improve their means to improve the bottom line, and replacing Fields with Wilson had to be high on the list.
