Pittsburgh Steelers benching Justin Fields for Russell Wilson despite 4-2 record? It’s under ‘consideration’

Despite a 4-2 start to the season, a quarterback change could be on the horizon for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters on Tuesday that Russell Wilson is under “consideration” to start against the New York Jets on Sunday night, which would relegate Justin Fields to a backup role.

“Last week, we were scheduled for Russ to work in totality. He did that. Over the course of the week, I got comfortable with his ability to display his health. Now, it’s about knocking the rust off. He did some of that last week. He is in consideration this week.

“We’ll see where that leads us. Both guys at the quarterback position are scheduled to work tomorrow, and we’ll just walk it day-by-day, all geared towards putting ourselves in the best position to win the football game.”

Wilson was supposed to be the Week 1 starter but missed the first five games of the season due to a calf injury. The Super Bowl-winning quarterback was active in the Steelers’ Week 6 win against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Related: Multiple NFL teams still view Russell Wilson as a starting QB

Justin Fields gets Steelers off to hot start

When Wilson went down, Fields, the former first-round pick of the Chicago Bears, took the reins and led the Steelers to a 4-2 record to start the season.

Through the first six games, Fields has completed over 66% of his passes for 1,106 yards and five touchdowns. He’s only thrown one pick on the season.

Fields has also rushed for 231 yards and five scores.

The Steelers traded for Fields in the offseason for a 2025 sixth-round draft pick. The Bears took Fields 13th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. In three seasons with Chicago, Fields went 10-28, throwing 40 touchdowns and 30 interceptions.

The Steelers are 1.5-point underdogs against the Jets for Sunday Night Football.

Related: Pittsburgh Steelers reporter reveals team’s hard-line stance in Brandon Aiyuk trade talks

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