OT: The Pittsburgher Thread: Sneaking up onto training camp

[CheckingLineCenter]

Was happy with how Fields played Sunday but have already seen enough where I’d go back to Wilson when he’s 100%.

Fields doesn’t do it fast enough for me. Can always go back to him if RW is worse.

 

[WickedWrister]

Tomlin is results oriented. If Fields wins these next two games while Russ is hurt, I think he'd be forced to reevaluate the depth chart.

 

[T1K]

Let’s say the Steelers start off 3-0, there is no chance they make a QB switch. That would be unprecedented.

 

[Peat]

Tomlin is results oriented. If Fields wins these next two games while Russ is hurt, I think he'd be forced to reevaluate the depth chart.

Maybe he will but at the same time, if the Falcons game is anything to go by, it'd be very possible for the Steelers to win the next two games without Fields doing anything much more than avoiding negative plays. At which point Tomlin should absolutely be looking for other options at QB.

 

[bigdaddyk88]

Let’s say the Steelers start off 3-0, there is no chance they make a QB switch. That would be unprecedented.

They were going 3-0 regardless of the Qb

 

[Buddy Bizarre]

I’ll take that as a no

Well Big Daddy hasn't done so well on his avatar bets lately, so not surprised he's gun shy

 

[bigdaddyk88]

Well Big Daddy hasn't done so well on his avatar bets lately, so not surprised he's gun shy

No it’s a dumb idea neither guy is the long term answer

 

[T1K]

They were going 3-0 regardless of the Qb

lol ok move the goal posts more

 

[Buddy Bizarre]

No, he was better than Pickett. Half a yard better per attempt, used his legs, and his rating was 13 points higher than Pickett's career rating. I am not a big Fields fan and thought he was just ok last game but that was still better than Pickett's level. I will say the lack of TDs was bang on Pickett though.

Yea JF had control of the offense, which I haven't seen for about 2+ years. Granted it was just 1 game, but I had more confidence we'd get into the EZ last week than I ever had with KP.

I'll give JF a pass on no TD's this past week, but if he puts up another goose-egg I'm gonna get a tad worried.

I'll amend my statement to the above. I felt MR had control of the offense as well, but that was what a 5 game stretch?

 

[T1K]

Maybe he will but at the same time, if the Falcons game is anything to go by, it'd be very possible for the Steelers to win the next two games without Fields doing anything much more than avoiding negative plays. At which point Tomlin should absolutely be looking for other options at QB.

They are not making a QB switch if they’re 3-0. That’s a great way to lose a locker room.

 

[TooManyHumans]

Yea JF had control of the offense, which I haven't seen for about 2+ years. Granted it was just 1 game, but I had more confidence we'd get into the EZ last week than I ever had with KP.

I'll give JF a pass on no TD's this past week, but if he puts up another goose-egg I'm gonna get a tad worried.

I'll amend my statement to the above. I felt MR had control of the offense as well, but that was what a 5 game stretch?

I am always worried with Fields out there. I simply saw him turn the ball over too often in Chicago not to be worried.

 

[Buddy Bizarre]

Tomlin is results oriented. If Fields wins these next two games while Russ is hurt, I think he'd be forced to reevaluate the depth chart.

Btw- Tomlin is on record stating "you don't lose your job to injury". Which to me means RW would be inserted when healthy. Remember Tomlin declared him the starter before last Friday.

Let's see if his actions match his words on this one.

 

[WickedWrister]

Maybe he will but at the same time, if the Falcons game is anything to go by, it'd be very possible for the Steelers to win the next two games without Fields doing anything much more than avoiding negative plays. At which point Tomlin should absolutely be looking for other options at QB.

I mean he's going to need to lead a TD drive at some point if he wants to keep the job yes. And I think Fields did some positive things in the game, not just avoiding negative plays. But if he's winning football games, that's going to trump everything.

 

[Buddy Bizarre]

I am always worried with Fields out there. I simply saw him turn the ball over too often in Chicago not to be worried.

Oh yea I get it. I saw the same thing.

But if last week was any indication, maybe we've got a more toned down version of JF. He needs to clean up the center exchange stuff for sure.

 

[WickedWrister]

Btw- Tomlin is on record stating "you don't lose your job to injury". Which to me means RW would be inserted when healthy. Remember Tomlin declared him the starter before last Friday.

Let's see if his actions match his words on this one.

Tell that to Kenny

 

[Buddy Bizarre]

Tell that to Kenny

Well that's hard to decipher. Did KP just quit on the team last year, was he not cleared, or did Tomlin piss him off?
The details are murky about his health status.

 

[WickedWrister]

Well that's hard to decipher. Did KP just quit on the team last year, was he not cleared, or did Tomlin piss him off?
The details are murky about his health status.

Whatever the right answer is, he was healthy enough to be the backup to Rudolph in the playoff game against Buffalo.

This team's whole philosophy is, "If it aint broke, don't fix it"

 

[Empoleon8771]

Well there's the bit where the controversy matters. What if when Wilson is healthy, Fields is playing well enough that taking the job away is awkward, but not so well that you don't want to find out what Wilson - notionally the better QB when fit - has because that might elevate the team's ceiling that crucial extra degree?

I mean, yeah, Wilson is a 35 year old on a 1 year vet minimum deal... but he's also the multiple award winning guy with a super bowl ring that the team brought in because, if you believe them, they want to win now. If they believe in him like that, then Fields being alright shouldn't matter to that decision, but it will.

Which is why I think a controversy matters. I'm not necessarily saying it's a bad thing, but it matters. Any time the narrative means the team's engine room are going to struggle to bring people along with what they believe in, it matters. Does Tomlin want to find himself in a position where after 5 games, he's having to win people over to keeping on with Wilson over Fields because he believes Wilson has the higher ceiling when integrated, but it's a bit slow and some guys think he's wrong? I doubt it. It's not ideal. It's the sort of little thing that snowballs.

So... I do think we should give a shit about QB drama.

The word I bristle at is 'unnecessary'. The more you believe there's potentially something great still left in Wilson, the more important it is to be cautious about his health. Even if you think you've got to just ignore that and stick Wilson in, you've got to be aware that a hindered QB has a damn good chance of generating drama all by himself.

There's nothing Tomlin can do about it except react to the situation. Dulac's been both stupid and a tosser for suggesting otherwise, which is really weird considering how often he's the Steelers tame reporter.

He's also a QB that just got released from a mega contract from Denver because he didn't play anywhere even remotely close to his salary with them. I think it would be different if this team made a significant commitment to Wilson, but they simply haven't done that. Not only that, but Wilson's recent performances in the past few years don't suggest that he's a guy who has to be playing either.

Granted Fields simply needs to be better than what he was in week 1 for this to actually be a "controversy", but I will strongly disagree with Tomlin if he pulls Fields for Wilson if Fields is playing well enough to keep the role. Him simply winning games shouldn't be enough, but him playing well should result in him keeping the role.

 

[Pengwins]

Assuming you feel the same way about Pickett as most people here, that doesn't disprove his point in the slightest.

the point is Fields is basically our best option to win this year and he is better than anyone we had last year.

 

[Pengwins]

Pickett is trash, can we just all agree and move on? Nobody likes him or thinks he's a good QB.

I never liked him. I was calling for Rudolph to start at the beginning of last season

we should trade Russell Wilson to the Dolphins

 

[Peat]

They are not making a QB switch if they’re 3-0. That’s a great way to lose a locker room.

Maybe not.

But my point isn't that Tomlin definitely will. Hell, I'm arguing that a QB controversy matters because it'll be hard for him to do that.

I'm arguing Tomlin should consider it. That it's possibly a bad thing for the team to go unquestioned with Fields simply because the defence and kicker keeps winning him games.

I mean he's going to need to lead a TD drive at some point if he wants to keep the job yes. And I think Fields did some positive things in the game, not just avoiding negative plays. But if he's winning football games, that's going to trump everything.

Should that last sentence be used for Spencer Anderson keeping a place over Isaac Seumalo too?

And yeah, Fields did some positive things. Some really positive things. But you're going to struggle to find a game where a QB didn't do some positive things. Any QB who reaches the NFL is going to have some moments so I take it as read that a QB did that. I'm looking for a lot of positive things. I'm looking for Fields to look like he's leading the offence, not getting babysat by it.

Tell that to Kenny

I'd also point out that Pickett is an example that Tomlin isn't entirely ruled by results, or he'd have never risked pissing off a QB who'd gone 7-3 in games he started and finished.

He's also a QB that just got released from a mega contract from Denver because he didn't play anywhere even remotely close to his salary with them. I think it would be different if this team made a significant commitment to Wilson, but they simply haven't done that. Not only that, but Wilson's recent performances in the past few years don't suggest that he's a guy who has to be playing either.

Granted Fields simply needs to be better than what he was in week 1 for this to actually be a "controversy", but I will strongly disagree with Tomlin if he pulls Fields for Wilson if Fields is playing well enough to keep the role. Him simply winning games shouldn't be enough, but him playing well should result in him keeping the role.

My point isn't about who Wilson is, it's about who Tomlin thinks Wilson is and what he wants to do with the team as a result, and the possible consequences that can come from that with Fields getting games.

I'd also point out that for a lot of people, simply winning games is enough to really want Tomlin to stick to Fields. I don't think he needs to improve from where he was to create a QB controversy. Simply avoid losing games while the defence wins them. There's enough people who already preferred Fields to Wilson, or who dislike tampering with a winning lineup for that to be enough.

the point is Fields is basically our best option to win this year and he is better than anyone we had last year.

Which still doesn't disprove his point.

 

[TooManyHumans]

You don't lose your job due to injury but maybe you do lose it due to injury combined with your replacement playing well. Hopefully Fields does that and we have to seriously consider him being the full time starter moving forward. I don't think his performance from the last game was good enough for that, and I am far from a Wilson fan.

 

[xlm34]

He's also a QB that just got released from a mega contract from Denver because he didn't play anywhere even remotely close to his salary with them. I think it would be different if this team made a significant commitment to Wilson, but they simply haven't done that. Not only that, but Wilson's recent performances in the past few years don't suggest that he's a guy who has to be playing either.

Granted Fields simply needs to be better than what he was in week 1 for this to actually be a "controversy", but I will strongly disagree with Tomlin if he pulls Fields for Wilson if Fields is playing well enough to keep the role. Him simply winning games shouldn't be enough, but him playing well should result in him keeping the role.

And I think this here is the key. If he plays the next two weeks like he did in Atlanta, then I’d have no issue with going back to Wilson even if they’re 3-0. Might as well see if things look any better with Wilson, even though I have serious doubts they will. But if a couple of those field goals become touchdowns and the offense is clicking, I really don’t see how you bench Fields.

 

[Pengwins]

You don't lose your job due to injury but maybe you do lose it due to injury combined with your replacement playing well. Hopefully Fields does that and we have to seriously consider him being the full time starter moving forward. I don't think his performance from the last game was good enough for that, and I am far from a Wilson fan.

When did Wilson earn the job?

 

[WickedWrister]

I'm just laughing at the idea of a 3-0 Steelers team where Boswell is like 22/22 on field goals