Pittsburgh Steelers must feel even better about their controversial quarterback decision following latest NFL trade news
The Steelers didn’t bite last offseason, and they have been proven correct.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are in a very similar situation at quarterback that they were last year. Here we sit, a week after the start of free agency, and the Steelers have no clear starter at signal-caller for 2026.
Well, if you remember back to last year, the Steelers wanted to re-sign Justin Fields. Ultimately, they were outbid by the New York Jets, and it set up the ultimate revenge game in Week 1. Well, Fields is no longer a Jet, and despite all of the grief that the Steelers received for waiting on Rodgers, it looks like the right move after Monday.
Jets trade former Steelers QB Justin Fields to the Chiefs
Fields led the Steelers to a 4-2 record and played some of the best football of his NFL career in Pittsburgh. He rebuilt his mechanics, his accuracy and pocket presence improved, and his legs helped elevate the offense on critical third downs when nothing else was working.
Obviously, the Steelers went on to bench him as Russell Wilson returned from health, and while that went well for a while, there were people inside the Steelers building who wanted to turn back to Fields when the Steelers started to slide with Wilson.
Those opinions obviously carried over to free agency, but Pittsburgh didn’t want to pay the 2 year, $40 million deal that the Jets ended up giving Fields. The problem is, the Jets are the Jets.
Justin Fields struggled in New York
Fields went through the wringer with the Jets. After being publicly reprimanded by Jets owner Woody Johnson, Fields ended his tenure in New York with a 2-7 record and posted the second-worst QBR of his career. That may not be totally fair to Fields, however, as the Jets haven’t been able to figure out the quarterback position or how to field a competitive team in general for years now.
We saw the same thing happen the year prior with Aaron Rodgers in New York, who in hindsight, I’m sure the Steelers are happy about signing over Fields. Perhaps going to Kansas City and learning behind Patrick Mahomes and under Andy Reid will be a saving grace, however.
You never burn bridges, and Fields left on good terms. A reclamation project for Andy Reid could mean a reunion for the Steelers one day.
Pittsburgh Steelers News
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