Former NFL QB makes bold statement about Steelers, Justin Fields

The Pittsburgh Steelers are 2-0 with Justin Fields as their starting quarterback, yet it feels like there’s still a significant amount of people looking for a reason to bench him and hand the starting job back over to Russell Wilson.

ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky isn’t one of them, however, and he made some pretty bold claims about the Steelers and Fields during a Tuesday appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show.”

“I think Justin should be their starter, and I think they can beat basically anybody with him,” Orlovsky said . “[Winning a Super Bowl] is a stretch; I still don’t think they’re explosive enough … to beat your Houston’s, your Kansas City’s, I think the Jets could get hot, and Buffalo. So my point in saying that is, I don’t think they can do that with [Wilson].”

Orlovsky’s declaration seems a little farfetched considering how Pittsburgh’s first two games of 2024 have played out.

The Steelers are undefeated, but both wins were in one-score games against the Atlanta Falcons and Denver Broncos. Pittsburgh’s offense is averaging just 206.5 yards and 15.5 points per game, which rank 30th and 26th, respectively.

Though Fields’ 94.6 passer rating is higher than Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts, Dak Prescott and Matthew Stafford’s, he’s only thrown for 273 yards and one touchdown.

Week 3’s matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers will be a much better measuring stick of where the Steelers and Fields actually stand relative to the rest of the AFC. L.A. ranks 12th in total offense and scoring offense, and second in total defense (227.5 yards allowed per game).