Steelers' Mike Tomlin's Latest Unique QB Response Could Be Setting Up A "Soft Landing" To Avoid Controversy

The Pittsburgh Steelers will be back at Acrisure Stadium for their home opener on Sunday after starting off the 2024 season with two road games. Quarterback Justin Fields led the offense during their road trip and will remain as the starter in Week 3 as Russell Wilson's calf injury still isn't making any significant progress. Fields and the Steelers have their biggest test of the season yet this week, as the 2-0 Los Angeles Chargers come into town looking to hand Pittsburgh their first loss. 

After Fields' first two starts as a Pittsburgh Steelers QB both resulted in wins, head coach Mike Tomlin's decision on the starting quarterback dilemma becomes even more tricky. Even before Fields and the Steelers started off 2-0, much of the fan base was rooting for Fields in hopes of him becoming the franchise quarterback they've been looking for since the retirement of Ben Roethlisberger. Although, many believed he wouldn't be able to overcome his struggles as a passer. 

While taking over for Wilson, Fields has thrown for a career high in completion percentage and passer rating. He hasn't thrown for a bunch of yards, only averaging 136.5 per game, but the Steelers don't need a lot of passing yards right now. Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith has drawn up stellar strategic game plans for Fields and the offense, with the running game leading the way. Not to mention, Fields' statistics don't correlate with the way he's looked, due to a handful of big passing plays being taken away from penalties.  

It was expected that Wilson would take over the offense once his calf is good to go, but with these numbers, would Tomlin really be able to bench the hot hand in Fields? Steelers insider with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Ray Fittipaldo says Pittsburgh's head coach is trying to relieve the quarterback controversy with Fields making a case for QB1. Fittipaldo reflected on Tomlin's recent annoyed response to the media about who the starting QB will be going forward.

"He said it was debatable, just like it was before the first game," he told members of 93.7 The Fan. "I don't ever remember him saying that the competition was debatable when he named the starter. When I heard that answer, I sort of thought to myself, 'Okay, maybe he's laying the groundwork, that maybe he's trying to have a soft landing there if there's any kind of controversy.'"

The Steelers haven't started off a season 3-0 since 2020. If Fields leads the Steelers to a home opener win against a top-notch Chargers defense, it's going to be a major challenge for Wilson to reclaim the starting job. Tomlin could very soon be in a position where he has one unhappy quarterback not getting the start. 

At any rate, the offense as a whole needs to start scoring more points in order to put together convincing wins. After an ugly 13-6 win over the Denver Broncos in Week 2, Steeler Nation wants to see more out of an offense that was supposed to improve drastically this offseason. It's not going to get any easier in their first home game in Pittsburgh. The Chargers have allowed the least amount of points defensively after the first two weeks, with the Steelers following them with the second fewest points allowed. 

Steelers Vs. Chargers Set To Be A Run-Heavy, Old-School Football Game

The Chargers changed their offensive approach as they entered this season. In recent years, quarterback Justin Herbert would be responsible for leading the offense and throwing the ball all over the field. After the team lost their top two wide receivers and put together a solid offensive line, the Chargers have been running the ball, a lot. On top of that, Herbert suffered an apparent ankle injury during their Week 2 victory, which means his mobility will likely be limited against Pittsburgh's tough defense. 

Chargers running back JK Dobbins leads the NFL in rushing yards with 266 in two games. Pittsburgh is familiar with Dobbins and will be ready for a heavy workload from him on Sunday. Two of the league's top defenses will face off, but only one will remain undefeated. It's going to be a classic Pittsburgh smash-mouth football game to open up at home. 

Who do you think is coming away with the win? How is Tomlin handling the quarterback situation? Let us know in the comments.

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