Justin Fields has offered a harsh assessment of his own play after the news that Russell Wilson would be given first-team practice reps at quarterback.
Wilson was set to begin the season under center for Pittsburgh but suffered a calf injury before the opener against Atlanta, giving Fields the starting job over the last six weeks.
And while the the former Bears passer has shown glimpses of his ability – and the team went 4-2 with him playing – he doesn’t feel he made the most of his opportunity to win the starting job.
‘I don’t think I played good enough if I’m being real with you,’ he told reporters on Thursday.
‘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. We got a few wins, of course I’m glad about that, but there’s areas that I could be better at.
Justin Fields is expected to cede the Steelers QB job to Russell Wilson after six weeks
Fields played respectably for the Steelers but feels he could have done better under center
Fields has thrown for 1,106 yards and five touchdowns while throwing just one interception. He’s also rushed for 231 yards and five touchdowns.
Nonetheless, the Steelers have just the 20th-ranked scoring offense in the league, at 20.7 points per contest, and Fields has completed just under 57 percent of his passes over the last two contests.
Wilson, 35, is yet to line up in a competitive game for the Steelers seven months after signing a one-year contract in Pittsburgh for the veteran’s minimum of $1.2million.
Head coach Mike Tomlin had always maintained that Wilson was in ‘pole position’ for the starting job throughout preseason, though he was unable to start the regular season in that role due to his injury.
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin decided to give Wilson first-team practice reps
Wilson arrived in Pittsburgh with a strong pedigree as a passer, though his last two seasons in Denver didn’t go to plan.
There, Wilson posted a record of 11-19 as the team missed the playoffs in both seasons, though he was better in 2023 as he passed for 26 touchdowns against eight interceptions.
Wilson was a nine-time Pro Bowler in Seattle, helping to lead the team to a Super Bowl in 2014, and Steelers fans will hope to see that version of him in Pittsburgh.
