Steelers' Calvin Austin III Says Offense Is Comfortable With The Two-Quarterback System

As the Pittsburgh Steelers sit at the top of the AFC North at 8-3, they're coming down the stretch of their schedule where they need to win a few more games to make the playoffs. They currently hold the third seed in the AFC and if the playoffs started today, they would face the Los Angeles Chargers. According to the NFL, the Steelers currently have a 93% chance to make the playoffs. The Steelers are heading into Week 13 to face off against the Cincinnati Bengals on the road. The Bengals are currently 4-8, but arguably have a team that's better than four wins. Joe Burrow currently is third in the NFL in passing with 3,028 yards and has thrown for 27 touchdowns which is tied for first. The Steelers meanwhile have faced some offensive struggles the past couple of weeks and have implemented both quarterbacks in their offensive scheme.

Once Russell Wilson took the starting quarterback job in Week 7 against the New York Jets, he opened up the passing game. He has thrown for 1,212 yards and seven touchdowns. Wilson currently has a 4-1 record as a starter, while Justin Fields had a 4-2 record starting for the Steelers. Fields' legs were a huge weapon for the Steelers as he rushed for 274 yards and ran in five touchdowns. With the Steelers' offensive red zone struggles lately, Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith has always hinted at a Fields package during games. Steelers fans finally saw a glimpse of it during Week 11 against the Baltimore Ravens and then even more in Week 12 against the Cleveland Browns. The package didn't turn out to be that beneficial and the question arose if the package should even be used.

Calvin Austin III assured the media during his availability after practice that the switch between Fields and Wilson wasn't affecting the offense. He said there's no adjustment they have to do for either quarterback.

“I feel like the biggest thing when a new quarterback comes in is - I mean it’s a different voice, a different person in the huddle, but we’ve been so used to hearing Justin’s voice and stuff, we come in the huddle and it’s like, ‘Oh Justin in,’" Austin said.

After Week 12's game against the Browns, Wilson admitted in the postgame press conference that not knowing when Fields would come in affected his rhythm. There clearly needs to be something Smith and the offense works out for Fields' package if he wants to continue to use him in games. 

Fields had a big 30-yard run against the Browns when he came in, but other than that Fields didn't make a lot of huge splash plays. There were multiple questionable play calls for Fields during the game. Fields couldn't convert a 4th and 2 early on in the game and for a play that could've sealed the deal for Pittsburgh, he was brought in to throw a deep pass to George Pickens. That play is a Wilson special as he can throw the deep ball well, but Fields ended up overthrowing Pickens and the following drive, the Browns scored to take the lead. 

Each week, Steelers fans could see a different type of Fields package, but realistically it'd make the most sense to bring him in the red zone to avoid sacks and add another rushing threat to the offense.

Steelers' Offense Has Chance To Put On Points In Week 13

It's clear the Steelers have improved on offense, but the offensive red zone struggles continued against the Browns in Week 12. Pittsburgh's offense took a bit to warm up, but they went down 18-6 at the beginning of the fourth quarter and it was too late as they ended up losing 24-19. 

The Bengals' defense has let up 26.9 points per game, which ranks 28th in the NFL. If the Steelers get their offense together and get on top early, it could give the offense the confidence they've been looking for the past two games. However, Pittsburgh's defense will need to subdue the Bengals' offense who has been scoring 27 points per game on average.

Do you think the Fields package is good for the offense moving forward? Let us know in the comments below!

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