The new era is here for Pittsburgh and they need to embrace it.
There was immense pressure on Justin Fields entering Sunday vs. Las Vegas. Back-to-back losses converged with Russell Wilson getting healthy, causing rumblings of a quarterback change in Pittsburgh. It was still Fields’ job to lose, at least for the moment — but there’s no doubt he was walking a tightrope to stay on the field. It was going to take a not just a win, but a convincing effort to stave off any pressure.
Fields did just that and more, proving he’s not just the right man for the job now, but the future of the Steelers at quarterback moving forward.
It’s impossible to understate what Fields has meant to the offense in Pittsburgh. He’s unquestionably one of the team’s most important players by a significant margin, and while part of that is due to a suite of sub-par weapons in Pittsburgh, there’s also a reality where Fields is being immensely underrated by Steelers fans, and beyond.
There’s no question if you look at Fields’ passing numbers in isolation it’s a pretty ugly picture. On Sunday he finished completing 58.3 percent of his passes, didn’t score a touchdown, and had a below-average 6.0 yards-per-attempt. However, when you dig deeper you see the absolute ludicrous value of what Fields is bringing to the Steelers. I promise if you’ve been down on Justin Fields you’re about to see himin a different light.
Every fanbase has a tendency to look at their own quarterback in isolation without understanding the greater trends in the league. When we break down Fields as a passer compared to his peers he’s playing incredibly good football.
Expected Points Added (EPA) per play: 0.101 — 15th in the NFL, higher than Patrick Mahomes (0.094)
Completion % Above Expected (CPOE): 2.5 — 12th in the NFL, higher than C.J. Stroud (2.1)
Success Rate: 46.3% — 14th in the NFL, tied with Jordan Love
This isn’t a case where one advanced metric supports that Fields is playing high-level football, it’s that all of them support the fact that Fields is playing like a Top 15 quarterback — and this is happening in spite of so much going against him.
The Steelers still lack appreciable weapons outside of George Pickens. The offense being run by Arthur Smith really isn’t showcasing Fields’ abilities, and he’s essentially running a system built for Russell Wilson. Najee Harris has been inconsistent, leading to even more pressure on the quarterback in a run-first Arthur Smith system.
What we essentially have is a scenario where a lot of cards are being stacked against Fields, but he’s flourishing. If we remove the advanced analytics from the scenario and focus on pure stats it’s unquestionable that Fields is having an elite season at quarterback. As it stands these are his projected stats for 2024:
300-for-453 (66.2%), 3,134 yards, 14 TD, 3 INT — 93.6 passer rating
155 carries, 655 yards, 14 TD
This would be a phenomenal season, especially with a winning record and a playoff berth. These numbers are on par with a solid Lamar Jackson or Cam Newton season. Not their MVP years of course, but a standard middle year — for a quarterback the Steelers got for a song, and who’s 25-years-old.
So, when I see Steelers fans suggesting the team has to make the switch to Russ, or that Fields has somehow been disappointing, well … that’s simply a case of not really knowing how to watch football, or seeing how performances fit together in the tapestry of a season. There is no doubt that right now we’re still seeing quarterbacks around the league struggle to deal with defensive shifts. Passing is down, turnovers are up, and quarterback performance is faltering as a result. So, to have anyone performing at a solid level puts you a step ahead, and when we factor in the fact that the Steelers are a really iffy offensive team that need to keep building that side of the ball, well, it’s a damn good position to be in.
It doesn’t matter that the original plan was to use Russ and run a conservative offense in 2024, because plans change and the best teams can roll with the punches. Pittsburgh has found itself with a dynamic quarterback who is capable of doing so much more than just managing the game. The team has two more games before the bye week against the Jets and Giants, which they should be able to win. After that they have a break, and it’s here the team could rework its offense to integrate more designed plays for Fields.
If the Steelers can do this then the sky is the limit, because this team is for real.
Winner: Caleb Williams
From the former Bears’ QB to the current, there’s something beautiful about everything working out. Williams has been on a tear the last two weeks, and while it’s a nice benefit when you’ve faced two of the worst teams in the NFL (Panthers and Jaguars), there’s still no denying that Williams is finding his footing.
Accuracy is the big thing that has taken a jump in Williams game. He’s anticipating pressure better and learning how to manipulate the pass rush post-snap with his vision and pocket movement. This has resulted in a huge leap to his passing, and Chicago are having success.
This doesn’t mean it’s all a finished product. Williams is still lacking the ability to break explosive plays to his wide receivers on a regular basis, but this is really nitpicking when the team is winning.
Loser: Cowboys
What’s left to say here? Dallas’ season is going down the toilet, and they brought this on themselves. It’s not even worth discussing everything that went wrong for the Cowboys on Sunday.
Yes, Detroit is good but the blowout is inexcusable for a team with the talent and roster Dallas has. Just an embarrassment, and it’s time for heads to roll in order to usher in a new era.
Winner: The Commanders and Ravens
One of the games of the week really didn’t disappoint. This was a fun-ass game from beginning to end, showcasing the current potential of Baltimore and the incredible future in Washington.
It’s impossible to call either of these teams a “loser,” because, well … the Raven won, but also because Washington proved they can hang with the best in the league and challenge them. It’s unclear whether the Commanders can keep up their tear in 2024, but no team has a better future right now, outside of perhaps the Bears.
Loser: Deshaun Watson
Yeah, he’s still a loser. Oh, he’s also terrible at football too.
