Steelers HC Mike Tomlin gives update on Pittsburgh's QB situation following Russell Wilson's injury
The Pittsburgh Steelers started practice on Thursday and while there were plenty of takeaways, none stood out more than Russell Wilson and his injury situation. A rude awakening for Justin Fields, he found out around 6:00 am that he would take first-team reps following Wilson displaying: "Calf tightness." HC Mike Tomlin updated the situation and […]
The Pittsburgh Steelers started practice on Thursday and while there were plenty of takeaways, none stood out more than Russell Wilson and his injury situation.
A rude awakening for Justin Fields, he found out around 6:00 am that he would take first-team reps following Wilson displaying: "Calf tightness."
HC Mike Tomlin updated the situation and what to expect going forward after practice.
Latest on Russell Wilson's Injury
"Russ woke up today and his calf was tight," Coach Tomlin told reporters after practice on Thursday. "It was my decision to sit him down today and create a little short-term discomfort for him, not allowing the small problem to become a bigger problem. He could be characterized as day-to-day. But on the flip side of that it was an awesome opportunity for Justin (Fields) and the challenge for our offense as a unit to deal with a little adversity at the outset…
"… He was excited about the opportunity to lead that first group out of the huddle and taking charge today."
You never know when, how, or where your opportunities are going to come in the NFL so you have to take them where you can get them. For Fields, it had been clear all spring and early summer that Russell Wilson was going to be the starting QB.
You didn't need the rhetoric from coaches to tell you that, it was obvious via rep allocation alone.
But an injury, even if it's small, can change the dynamic of the QB room and presents the opportunity for an actual competition. To be clear, day-to-day means exactly what it sounds like.
If Russell wakes up Friday and has no soreness, he's probably going to practice. But if the calf was tight enough for him to bring it up, then maybe he takes off the weekend.
Pittsburgh also has to be careful, as you never know what a calf could lead to, and that was probably Coach Tomlin's reasoning for sitting Wilson out. And we know that Mike Tomlin still believes in the hierarchy on the Steelers depth chart, telling reporters as recently as Wednesday night that nothing has changed in terms of Russell Wilson's pole positioning.
So we'll see where things go from here. If Russell continues to miss time, it's going to be hard to get away from Fields if he continues to progress. But if he's back as soon tomorrow, it may be a non-story come Saturday.
Steelers Training Camp Takeaways: Russell Wilson misses day one with a calf, Justin Fields takes advantage
A full recap of day one at Steelers training camp.
