Much of the talk at Pittsburgh Steelers training camp thus far has centered around the quarterback position, and more specifically around Justin Fields possibly supplanting Russell Wilson as the team's favorite to start.
Head coach Mike Tomlin has made it clear on a few occasions that Wilson is in the lead for the role, but his injury has opened the door for speculation about Fields possibly pulling off an upset after multiple strong showings in practice.
While it remains to be seen who will end up being the better option for Pittsburgh in 2024, ESPN analyst Louis Riddick believes the Steelers are capable of going to the AFC Championship Game if they can get the most out of Fields.
"If Justin Fields can throw the football the way that Ryan Tannehill did in his first year-and-a-half down in Tennessee and have that kind of effectiveness, Pittsburgh could be one of those teams that's playing in that AFC title game," Riddick said. "That's the kind of vision that I believe they are having if Justin winds up becoming that kind of player for them."
Of course, Riddick is referencing offensive coordinator Arthur Smith's tenure with the Titans, when he was wildly successful from 2019 through 2020 after giving Tannehill the starting job in Week 7 of the former year.
Not only did Tannehill revive his career, the Titans made an improbable run to the AFC Championship Game during the 2019 season and had one of the better offenses in the NFL over Smith's two seasons as offensive coordinator.
Smith now faces a similar situation in Pittsburgh, as he's taking over an offense that has two quarterbacks in need of a career revival. Adding to that, Smith has shown he can more than effectively run an offense that emphasizes the run, although he won't have anyone like Derrick Henry this time around.
Nevertheless, Smith is in a situation he's familiar with, and a situation that he's had success with before. If he can get the most out of one of his two signal-callers like he did Tannehill, the Steelers are indeed capable of making noise in 2024.
