The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t scored a touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons during Week 1. But they won, and despite not reaching the end zone, there were a lot of positives about how quarterback Justin Fields played.
Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith agreed. To open his session with the media on September 12, Smith explained what impressed him the most about how Fields played in the season opener.
“What fired me up was situational football. End of the half, things you work on, handle that situation, being able to get points on the board, flip the momentum a little bit going in the half,” Smith told reporters. “And really at the end of the game. We had six out of 10 drives where we had scoring.
“Now, we want touchdowns. That’s not celebrating fields goals, but the efficiency of that, and then based on that — we had six scoring drive — two of them really situational football, because that one late in the game, you don’t want to get greedy, and you kind of concede it.
“Once he converted on that quarterback counter, that thing was over. We just bled the clock down.”
In many ways, Fields’ debut with the Steelers went the opposite of the way his tenure did with the Chicago Bears.
Fields didn’t have many highlight-reel plays in Week 1. But he excelled situationally during the 18-10 victory.
QB Justin Fields Avoided Major Mistake in Steelers Debut
Fields completed 17 of 23 passes for 156 yards. He added 57 rushing yards on 14 carries and also took 2 sacks.
That’s a rather pedestrian stat line. But while Fields didn’t have a touchdown, he also didn’t throw an interception or lose a fumble.
In Chicago, Fields did a terrific job of showcasing his athleticism and talent. But he didn’t always play smart, situational football.
Smith suggested that’s often the difference at the NFL level. In Fields’ first game with the Steelers, he didn’t allow the Falcons defense to make that difference.
“That’s how you lose the games, you know,” Smith said. “Plus, the plan. The way I looked at it, maybe it’s because I coached Jesse [Bates], and I’ve got so much respect for Jesse Bates, but that guy is a game-wrecker, and just trying to neutralize him, which I thought we did, and that’s what it came down to.
“Turnovers, our game-wrecker wrecked the game, theirs didn’t.”
Smith also noted that Fields was able to accomplish what he did on September 8 after a “sudden change.” Fields wasn’t 100% sure he was going to start until hours prior to kickoff.
Will Fields Start in Week 2?
The national media has pushed for Fields to become Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback since the early spring. But throughout the summer, head coach Mike Tomlin and the Steelers remained rather steadfast in their desire to start Russell Wilson.
However, that could be changing.
Tomlin told reporters on September 10 that Wilson “feels better” but is still not healthy. So, Tomlin said the team was moving forward by preparing Fields to start again in Week 2.
Over the past two days, there has been no suggestion that that plan is changing. More notably, on two separate occasions, Tomlin could have told the media Wilson will still start with healthy, but he instead denied to answer any hypothetical questions.
If Fields does receive the opportunity to start another week, he promised that the offense would get off to a better start against the Denver Broncos than it did in Week 1.
Although he didn’t lose the fumble, Fields botched the first snap versus the Falcons. The Steelers offense also averaged only 2.72 yards per play on its first two drives of the game.
The Steelers will face the Broncos on the road at 4:25 pm ET on September 15. Fields has never played at altitude in Denver. A former member of the Broncos, Wilson played his home games in Denver for two seasons.
