The Pittsburgh Steelers are set to officially announce their starting quarterback at some point this week, with the decision coming down to either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields. But, make no mistake, Wilson is fully expected to get the nod.
While head coach Mike Tomlin has never relented on this being a competition between the two, he has made it clear since March that Wilson was in the "pole position" (Steelers fans are probably sick of that term, so sorry) the entire way.
That didn't change during the offseason program, entering training camp, after Wilson got hurt pushing a sled in training camp and missed practice time and preseason Week 1, or after the second preseason game when Wilson struggled.
Making it even more clear that Wilson was always going to be the choice was the fact that not only did he start in preseason Week 3 once again, he was immediately pulled after one scoring drive that saw him throw two passes before being replaced by Fields, who played about a quarter's worth of time.
Despite the writing being on the wall for the past five months, the national media continues to cling to the narrative that Fields has a chance to win the starting job.
"My feeling is that Justin Fields has done enough to make this week interesting in Pittsburgh," Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer wrote.
"That doesn’t mean that, when it’s over, Mike Tomlin won’t step to podium and name Russell Wilson the Steelers’ starter. But the fact that we’re still talking about this — Tomlin has left the competition open after the Steelers’ last preseason game — is a very real indication of where Pittsburgh is at with its opener less than two weeks away against the Atlanta Falcons."
Then, there's ESPN's Dan Orlovsky, who actually used the word "bamboozled" (H/T Steelers Depot) upon coming to the realization that there never was a true quarterback competition, even though, again, it was clear for quite some time.
"I would've started Justin Fields, but this was never a quarterback competition. We were bamboozled a little bit... If it was, Russell would've played played much more in preseason Week 3 this past weekend. I would've started Justin Fields, and I would've tried to minimize the riding of the wave," Orlovsky said.
We also have Good Morning Football, which devoted two minutes and 41 seconds too many to breaking down the "Steel City QB Battle" that really never was. The show also devoted another nine minutes to discussing who should start in Pittsburgh.
🥊CHOOSE YOUR FIGHTER:
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) August 26, 2024
Russell Wilson or Justin Fields @Akbar_Gbaja | @steelers pic.twitter.com/SjCvyLutFo
Granted, Tomlin did keep saying that it was indeed a competition between the two, but reading between the lines — and those lines were very wide apart — always showed which way Tomlin and the Steelers were going to go.
Was Fields good this offseason? Sure, but not to the level that made it abundantly clear that he should be the starter. The failed former Chicago Bears starter needed to do much more than he did to supplant a Super Bowl-winning quarterback who was always the choice for the job.
Wilson has faced an unreal onslaught from the national media dating back to his struggles with the Denver Broncos, and that has only continued with the Steelers.
Rest assured, the national media will be pounding the table for Fields to start at the first hint of trouble for Wilson. And they may eventually get their wish if Wilson doesn't pan out, although he's going to get plenty of chances to prove himself.
