The Pittsburgh Steelers have a muddy quarterback situation this year. With Justin Fields playing well, and Russell Wilson now healthy, it’s not any clearer entering Week 7.
On October 15, it arguably got even muddier.
Minutes before Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin took the podium for his weekly Tuesday press conference, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported the team “plans to give Russell Wilson first-team reps in practice” ahead of the October 20 matchup with the New York Jets.
Pelissero added that the plan places Wilson “in line to make his season debut” in Week 7.
“Pittsburgh is 4-2 with Justin Fields,” Pelissero wrote. “But Wilson’s calf is fully healed and now he gets his shot.”
However, in his press conference, Tomlin conveyed a different plan.
“We’re going to determine that as we get closer to tomorrow,” Tomlin said to a question on which quarterback will practice with the first-team offense. “We’ve got some more strategic meetings today. But I’ll acknowledge that [Wilson] proved his health last week, and we’re looking hard at it this week.
“It’s up for consideration.”
Tomlin made no indication whether he’s leaning toward starting Wilson or Fields in Week 7. The Steelers head coach also said he will decide closer to game time who will start behind center.
Russell Wilson Expected to Start in Week 7?
To further complicate the situation, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport quote tweeted Pelissero’s report, writing on X (formerly Twitter), “A QB change in Pittsburgh.”
There very well could be a quarterback change for the Steelers in Week 7. Reading between the lines, it even sounds like there will be.
If the Steelers were fully confident in how Fields performed in the first six games, Tomlin could have named him the starter on October 15. The fact Tomlin and the coaching staff is “undecided” indicates the door is very open for Wilson.
But as of October 15, there is no clear-cut quarterback change for the Steelers.
“I’m sure at some point,” Tomlin said to a follow-up question about whether Wilson will practice with the first-team offense. “But I haven’t decided who gets the ball first.
“That sort of minutiae has been undecided.”
In addition to proving his health, last week for Wilson was about “knocking the rust off” according to Tomlin. But the Steelers head coach is also confident in Wilson’s ability to be in midseason form during his team debut because of his experience.
“There’s also a totality of his resume as well that makes you more comfortable than [with] guys with shorter resumes in that regard,” Tomlin told reporters. “In terms of his ability to play ball with a limited amount of exposure.”
“It’s just comfort that comes with experience.”
Mike Tomlin Compliments QB Justin Fields
Tomlin passed on the opportunity to name Fields his team’s starter. That may say more about how the Steelers view the 25-year-old quarterback than anything.
But Tomlin expressed that how he is approaching the team’s quarterback situation ahead of Week 7 is more than just about evaluating Fields’ performance.
“Justin has been really good, and we’ve been really good at times. But not to be confused with great,” Tomlin told the media. “This is a competitive league. We’re trying to position ourselves to be that team. We’ve got a player with talent who hasn’t had an opportunity to play, so we’re going to potentially explore those things.
“Sometimes it doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with what Justin has done or not done. Justin has been an asset to us.”
Whether from Fields or Wilson, the Steelers need more from their passing game. They are 28th with 166.8 passing yards per game.
Fields has completed a career-high 66.3% of his passes and only thrown 1 interception. But he’s not completing many of his deep attempts down field.
What Fields is doing, though, is giving the Steelers an additional boost in the run game. On October 15, Tomlin called Fields’ legs “an x-factor” that Wilson doesn’t have.
Fields has 5 rushing touchdowns in six games this season.
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Mike Tomlin Contradicts Report on Steelers’ Week 7 Plan for Russell Wilson