PITTSBURGH – Russell Wilson's time may be fast approaching in Pittsburgh.
Coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday that Wilson is “in consideration” to be the starting quarterback when the Steelers (4-2) host the New York Jets (2-4) on Sunday night. The 35-year-old nine-time Pro Bowler has spent the past six weeks recovering from a calf injury he aggravated a couple of days before the season opener.
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While Tomlin stressed that Justin Fields "has been really good" while filling in for Wilson and the team has “been really good at times,” the NFL's longest-tenured coach added that good was “not to be confused with great."
Enter Wilson, who won the starting job at the end of training camp before tweaking the calf less than 72 hours before a Week 1 visit to Atlanta. Tomlin saw enough of Wilson in practice last week to have him serve as the backup behind Fields during a 32-13 win in Las Vegas, and there's a very real chance they could swap roles against the Jets.
“This is a competitive league, man,” Tomlin said. “We’re trying to position ourselves to be that team. And we got a player with talent who hadn’t had an opportunity to play. So we’re going to potentially explore those things.”
Fields has been efficient and occasionally spectacular during his six-week audition. He's also largely avoided the kinds of mistakes that were a common thread during his three years in Chicago, throwing just one interception in 160 attempts. His accuracy, however, had dipped of late. Fields has completed just 57% (29 of 51) of his passes over his past eight quarters, down from 69% (77 of 111) across the opening month of the season.
The Steelers are also 28th in passing and 20th in scoring, riding a soft(ish) early season schedule and a disruptive defense led by All-Pro linebacker T.J. Watt to a tie atop the AFC North with rival Baltimore. After a pair of home primetime games against the New York City area teams — the Jets on Sunday, the Giants on Oct. 28 — the sledding figures to get far heavier once the calendar flips to November and Wilson's resume may be too tantalizing for Tomlin to pass up.
Tomlin cautioned that the decision to give Wilson reps with the first team in practice this week has more to do with Wilson's experience and his resume than Fields' performance.
“Justin has been an asset to us," Tomlin said.
Just not enough of one for Tomlin to definitively hand the starting job to Fields outright. Tomlin declined to get into specifics on how he will divide the practice snaps with the first team and doesn't expect to make a decision on who will start against the Jets until later in the week.
"We’re just going to roll the ball out, let both guys work and make decisions from there," Tomlin said.
Fields' play has allowed the Steelers to bring Wilson — who turns 36 next month — along slowly. Wilson initially injured the calf when the team reported to training camp in July and there was a concern when he aggravated it that it could lead to something more serious.
Wilson has steadily improved and showed Tomlin last week that he could protect himself in practice. The next step will be knocking off whatever rust might remain from a month-plus of relative inactivity, though Tomlin doesn't sound overly concerned.
Whoever the quarterback is will likely be playing behind a seventh different offensive line combination in as many weeks with rookie center Zach Frazier out with an ankle injury sustained against the Raiders. Fields' mobility — he's already run for five touchdowns — has helped offset the constant churn in front of him. That's not a tool that Wilson has had since the height of his “Let Russ Cook” days with Seattle several years ago.
Asked how the offense might change with Wilson behind center, Tomlin smiled and said “it remains to be seen. And I think that’s one of the cute things about this discussion.”
NOTES: LB Nick Herbig (hamstring) will miss his second straight game. ... There's a chance OLB Alex Highsmith (groin), out since a win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sept. 22, could return. ... RB Cordarrelle Patterson (ankle) may also be available after missing two games.
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