Ryan Clark Believes Steelers Will Make In-Season Change To Justin Fields If Playoffs Are Out Of Reach

Russell Wilson appears to be in line to be the Week 1 starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers this season, though there are still plenty of chances for Justin Fields to state his case throughout training camp. But even if Wilson is the starter, the door will not be closed for a potential in-season change. We saw it multiple times in 2023, with three different quarterbacks starting games for the Steelers. Whether it be an injury or performance-related change, Fields could very well finish the season as the starter.

Former Steelers S Ryan Clark was on SportsCenter this afternoon to break down the quarterback competition in Pittsburgh.

“I believe that Russell Wilson is going to start,” Clark said. “There isn’t a lot of time for a guy to come from the second position and earn the spot if the starter is at least competent. And Russell Wilson is gonna understand how to run Arthur Smith’s offense…I think he’ll do enough to be the starter for this team.

“It’s when the season gets going and you’re in the tough AFC North. I believe if this team is hovering somewhere around .500, we’ll see Justin Fields because you have an opportunity in Fields to have your quarterback of the future…If you’re Omar Khan, the GM, and this team isn’t playing for a playoff spot, and I’m not talking about the last spot at seven, I believe they’ll look to make that change.”

This has been discussed in several different ways by several different analysts before, but an in-season change to Fields if the Steelers are out of playoff contention makes sense. He is a decade younger than Wilson and offers much more upside for the future. Reports indicate that Wilson and the Steelers have mutual interest in a contract extension following the season, but that is predicated on him playing well, and even then, it might be difficult to make the money work for a then 36-year-old Wilson.

Clark’s thoughts make sense, but what does being out of playoff contention even look like for the Steelers? They haven’t had a meaningless game since 2012, as Tomlin’s teams are almost always in the thick of the playoff hunt at the end of the season. Even if they are hovering around .500 with five or six games to go, they will still be in the hunt. I suppose it would depend on Wilson’s performance at that point.

The worst-case scenario would be the Steelers missing the playoffs while failing to get any further intel or evaluation on Justin Fields ahead of free agency next offseason. They would then have to take a gamble on Wilson, Fields or punt to another offseason acquisition in free agency or the draft. The best way to make an informed decision on Fields is to get him on the field in the regular season.