Steelers coaches break down Russell Wilson, Justin Fields competition

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin insisted earlier this week that Justin Fields will be "given an opportunity to compete" this summer with Russell Wilson for the club's starting quarterback job after many assumed Wilson was already penciled in atop the depth chart.

Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith later broke down that battle during a chat with Jori Epstein of Yahoo Sports.

"Russ is way more of a known commodity because of the years he's had in the league, and he's had a lot of change in the last four years and his journey," Smith explained. "Justin is at such a different part of his career, but they both had big moments in this league. … You've got a competition going on, you get two guys fighting it out, but you're also building the big picture. So that's why you got to evaluate."

Fields impressed teammates working with the first-team offense as Wilson continued his recovery from a minor calf injury he suffered last week. With that said, Wilson reportedly is not yet "in jeopardy of losing the starting job at all" for a team looking to make a second straight trip to the playoffs.

"They both move well, they both do different things, but Justin is unique in the sense of when he breaks, it's like a track meet," Steelers defensive coordinator Teryl Austin added. "So you would have to do some things differently with Justin in terms of how you keep the pocket condensed, how you keep all that stuff in there. [It’s] similar with Russ, but Russ is probably gonna look more to escape to throw, where Justin — when he escapes, he could take it 40 yards. So you have to have different plans for those guys."

Fields turned just 25 years old this past March, while Wilson will be 36 when December begins. Pittsburgh can move on from both quarterbacks next offseason, but general manager Omar Khan indicated he's more so focused on the upcoming campaign than on the club's long-term quarterback situation.

"We're all about trying to win now," Khan told Epstein. "We understand that there's a future and we're always thinking about what impact every decision we make has on the future. But we're about winning this year."

As of Thursday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Wilson as the heavy betting favorite at -550 odds to start over Fields (+380) for Pittsburgh's regular-season opener at the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 8. Fields will try to close that gap when the Steelers begin their preseason with a home game against the Houston Texans on Aug. 9.