Steelers insider says there's 'no debate' over who will be team's starting QB

Before the first day of training camp, Pittsburgh Steelers reporter Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette suggested that head coach Mike Tomlin had essentially already decided to make Russell Wilson his Week 1 starting quarterback over Justin Fields.

According to Steelers insider Gerry Dulac of the Post-Gazette, the situation hasn't changed heading into Pittsburgh's preseason finale at the Detroit Lions on Saturday afternoon.

"I don't think you really have to wait for any official proclamation," Dulac explained during a Thursday appearance on "The Dan Patrick Show," as shared by Jeremy Pike of Steelers Depot. "Russell Wilson was brought in for a reason, and that was to be their starting quarterback."

Wilson began training camp as the clear favorite to win the job but was then slowed with a calf injury that opened the door for Fields to climb atop the depth chart. However, Fields failed to cement himself as Pittsburgh's QB1 across a pair of preseason contests, and multiple analysts have mentioned that the 25-year-old hasn't eliminated the flaws from his game that caused the Chicago Bears to trade him before the Bears made Caleb Williams the first pick of this year's draft.

"Fields won 10 games in three years in Chicago," Dulac continued, "and aside from 12 practices at training camp and eight possessions in the preseason, I don't think he's done anything to change [the Steelers'] mind. So there's really no debate here unless Russell Wilson would get hurt."

ESPN's Brooke Pryor noted on Thursday that Wilson and not Fields will start Saturday's exhibition contest at Ford Field. As of Friday morning, both DraftKings Sportsbook (-425) and FanDuel Sportsbook (-620) had Wilson as the betting favorite to start the Steelers' Week 1 matchup at the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 8.

Even if Wilson gets the nod for the Atlanta game, Fields could still see some action on the second Sunday of September.

"Do I think they might have some packages for Justin Fields, a play or two? I don't know, but I tell you, they should based on his skill set," Dulac added.

It is, of course, possible that Wilson could fall flat on his face against Detroit and force Tomlin into making a call the coach seemingly doesn't want to make. Barring such a scenario, however, it sounds like fans should expect the one-time Super Bowl champion to be named Pittsburgh's starter as soon as late Saturday afternoon.