The Pittsburgh Steelers’ answer to the starting quarterback situation did not become any clearer during Saturday’s 9-3 preseason loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Russell Wilson returned from a calf injury to start this game after missing last week’s preseason game, but could not get anything going. He came into the game with an opportunity to seize the starting job but was only able to earn one first down through the air during his five drives in the game.
Wilson finished the game 8-10 for 47 yards before Justin Fields came in toward the end of the second quarter.
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Fields, who played the entire second half, similarly was unable to produce much at quarterback. A 20-yard scramble from Fields led to the Steelers’ lone successful field goal of the day, and he did bring the team into the red zone but was unable to convert those possessions into touchdowns.
While Fields eliminated the fumbles that hurt his first preseason appearance for the Steelers the week prior, he still was just 11-17 for 92 passing yards with eight carries for over 42 yards in an entire half of football.
“Still not what we’re looking for,” Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said after the game, via NFL.com’s Coral Smith. “It was better in some areas but still JV in too many others.”
Tomlin did add that the blame doesn’t only fall on the quarterbacks as the offensive line play was inconsistent and the entire offense struggled to find a rhythm.
“It’s somewhat of an incomplete study because you just don’t get a chance to see them operate or us operate or us establish rhythm and personality when you’re not winning possession downs,” Tomlin said. “And we weren’t. The first three or so series of the game, it was three and out, and you’re not going to get an opportunity to establish rhythm or play the way you’d like as an individual or a collective.”
The Steelers brought in Wilson and Fields this offseason to battle for the starting quarterback job after both players were cast off from their previous stops. Wilson was released from the Denver Broncos after two lackluster seasons with the team in which the offense ranked last in points per game in 2022, and 26th in total yards last season.
He signed a one-year deal with the Steelers in March.
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One day after the Steelers signed Wilson, they traded for Fields from the Chicago Bears. Fields spent three years with the Bears, where he showcased flashes of potential as a passer and especially a runner. He rushed for over 1,000 yards in 2022, and helped the Bears win four of their last six games a season ago, but has yet to find consistency and ease his turnover issues.
Fields has fumbled the football 38 times over his career and lost 11 of those fumbles. He also has just a 4-3 TD-INT ratio, throughout his career to this point.
The two quarterbacks will have one more preseason game against the Detroit Lions next Saturday when the team will hope to see one of the two separate themselves as the starter.
