NFL ANALYST MAKES BOLD PREDICTION FOR STEELERS’ JUSTIN FIELDS
The Pittsburgh Steelers overhauled their quarterback depth chart this offseason. Veteran Russell Wilson was signed after the Denver Broncos released him and is currently the starter. His backup is Justin Fields, who was acquired in a trade from the Chicago Bears.
They will be replacing Kenny Pickett, Mitchell Trubisky and Mason Rudolph. Pickett was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, while Trubisky was waived and landed with the Buffalo Bills.
Rudolph joined the Tennessee Titans as a free agent. The expectation is that the Steelers offense will be much improved in 2024 with Wilson or Justin Fields running the show.
With a dominant defense in place, an average to slightly above-average offensive performance, which would be a huge improvement on last season, will have the team right in the mix for a playoff spot again.
It will be interesting to see how much Justin Fields gets on the field this season. He is starting training camp as the team’s backup, but he has some elite skills to take advantage of.
There will likely be some packages every week installed by offensive coordinator Arthur Smith to take advantage of the athleticism Justin Fields possesses. An elite runner, he should receive a few touches every week.
But, Joe Tansey of Bleacher Report is expecting even more. In a recent article, he made a bold prediction that Justin Fields will start more games than Wilson in the 2024 season.
“Both quarterbacks will have opportunities to prove themselves as the starter, but it would be in the Steelers’ best interest to start the younger option with more potential to get the most out of their offense to build for 2024 and beyond,” Tansey wrote.
At this time last year, Pickett was viewed as the future of the Steelers on offense. A first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Pickett was the only quarterback drafted before the third round.
Given how limited of production that Pickett provided, it made sense for the Steelers to move on. Justin Fields didn’t live up to expectations with the Bears, but he has the talent to be more than serviceable in the right situation.
Is Pittsburgh the right situation for him? Only time will tell, but Justin Fields has the skill set that should lead to success with Smith as the offensive coordinator in a run-heavy offensive scheme.
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2024-07-05T14:06:49Z dg43tfdfdgfd