Justin Fields didn’t expect to make his first regular-season start as a Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback playing just 30 miles south of his hometown. But when Russell Wilson came to him pregame Sunday and told him he was up, that’s exactly what happened.
Though Fields and the offense didn’t score a touchdown, the Steelers slipped past the Atlanta Falcons 18-10 thanks to a franchise-tying six field goals by kicker Chris Boswell for a win in Fields’ debut.
“Personally, it’s great,” said Fields, who completed 17 of 23 attempts for 156 yards. “I have a bunch of family here, family and friends, old high school teammates, so just the setting, I really couldn’t ask for it a better way.
“God sure does work in mysterious ways, so I’m just thankful for him, and really just this moment with my team. But just coming back home, being able to get a dub against the hometown team was great.”
Fields didn’t speculate about what his performance could mean for his chance to start another game as Wilson continues to work back from aggravating his training camp calf injury.
“To be honest, I’m not even worried about that,” Fields said. “I just came in wanting a win, and I’m glad that we’re leaving here with a win. So in terms of who’s starting, who’s not, all I want to do is win at the end of the day. I’m really not even going to get into all of that. … At the end of the day, I came here to win. No matter if I was going to throw for 300 yards, 100 yards, no yards, I came here to win. So that’s the only focus I had.”
Wilson went through a 15-minute warm up, testing his calf as he navigated a series of throws with Steelers equipment staffers before retreating to the locker room about two and a half hours before kickoff to tell Fields he would play.
Afterward, coach Mike Tomlin praised Fields’ resiliency as he navigated the somewhat unexpected start, penalty-laden series and stalled drives.
“As I’ve gotten to know him, man, he is a real steady Eddie,” Tomlin said. “He’s not overly talkative, but he’s got a steady, strong demeanor and just being in stadium with the man, some of the things that I’ve seen through team development were confirmed. It’s just good to be able to communicate with a guy when things get thick, and you see the clear eyes. He’s there. He’s solid as a rock, and I think his play and thus our play is kind of reflective of that.”
But the coach offered little insight on how Fields’ performance could affect the quarterback depth chart entering the Week 2 game against the Denver Broncos.
“You can come ask me that question on Tuesday.” he said when asked about the starting quarterbacks.
Fields’ afternoon didn’t get off to the most auspicious start. He and rookie center Zach Frazier had miscue on the first snap exchange, something that happened several times in the preseason, and Fields’ first snap was a fumble.
Then, he missed the throw to a wide open Van Jefferson on the next play and another to Najee Harris a couple plays later. That drive ended in a 57-yard field goal by Boswell, one of three from beyond 50 yards, setting a franchise record.
“We definitely got off to a slow start, especially the first play and then I missed the throw to Van, but after the first drive I feel like we settled in a little bit, and especially as the game went along, definitely settled in. “… I don’t have a reason (for the slow start), but just know that won’t happen again.”
The Steelers trailed 10-9 at halftime, and Fields was 11 of 13 for 83 yards, though 33 of those yards came on a big pass play to George Pickens just before halftime. Without that throw, Fields averaged just 1.7 air yards per attempt and attempted only three passes more than five yards down the field in the first half.
Instead, Fields used his legs to gain ground. He had five carries for 26 yards in the first half, including a 12-yard scamper, and he finished with 14 carries for 57 yards.
“Justin being able to run is a huge plus for our offense, because once you’re able to run the ball, it opens up so many things,” offensive lineman Broderick Jones said. “So with him going one way and then you got Najee or Jaylen going the other, it’s hard for defense to keep the eyes on both. We just got to continue to implement that into our offense and just continue to make it work.”
Though the offensive line was playing with two new starters, one a rookie, Fields was sacked just twice, both in the second half. One came as Grady Jarrett beat James Daniels on the interior, and the second as Fields held on to the ball instead of throwing it away.
“I felt clean pretty much the most day,” Fields said. “I think on one of the sacks, I definitely could have just got the ball out quicker, throwing the ball away. But I think overall they did a great job, and I know they’re not going to do anything but keep getting better.”
In the second half, Fields made his longest play of the game with a 40-yard dime to Pickens in the third quarter. Pickens fell down as he made the catch, but because he didn’t believe he had been touched, he jumped up and ran the ball for several more yards before finally being brought down. The officials, though, ruled Pickens was down by contact after making the catch and kept the play to a 40-yard gain. The completion, made on the first play of the series, though didn’t jumpstart the offense to a touchdown drive. False starts and illegal shift penalties killed the drive, and Boswell came out for a 40-yard field goal to give the Steelers a 15-10 lead.
Even after Fields aired it out, the Steelers continued to lean on short throws and the ground game through the second half. Still, that recipe helped the offense move the ball fairly well in the second half. Fields connected with Pat Freiermuth for a 10-yard gain on a dart in the fourth quarter, and Najee Harris had a 20-yard run.
“It gets us going,” Fields said of the deep balls. “I think the O-line did a great job today protecting, keeping me clean on those longer developing plays. And of course, GP, he’s always going to make plays for you downfield. So really just a credit to the o-line, running backs, blocking and receivers doing their thing.”
