Steelers’ Russell Wilson to be full practice participant; Justin Fields will continue to get first-team reps

For the first time since reinjuring his calf, Russell Wilson will be a full practice participant on Wednesday ahead of the Steelers‘ Week 6 matchup against the Raiders. While Wilson is making strides in his recovery, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin stated that Justin Fields will continue to receive first-team practice reps.  

At this point, Fields should be considered the Steelers’ starting quarterback for Sunday’s game, but that could change if Wilson is able to string a full week of practices together without a setback. Wilson would also have to practice well enough for Tomlin to even consider making a switch at quarterback. 

Given those variables, the safe assumption is that Wilson will spend another Sunday backing up Fields, who helped the Steelers get out to a 3-0 start before losing their last two games to the Colts and Cowboys. Wilson may be elevated, though, to the primary backup spot for Sunday’s game if all goes well during this week’s practices. 

Fields will likely start this week, but given Wilson’s elevated practice status, it’s safe to wonder whether or not Fields’ time as the Steelers’ starting quarterback may be coming to an end soon. At this very least, Fields’ opportunities to convince Tomlin that he should remain the team’s QB1 are running out. 

Fields is coming off possibly his least impressive performance during Sunday night’s 20-17 loss to Dallas. But while he completed a season-low 55.65% of his attempts, Fields did engineer a scoring drive late in the game that ended with a touchdown pass to tight end Pat Freiermuth that gave Pittsburgh the lead. The Steelers defense, however, allowed the Cowboys to drive for the game-winning score after Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott hit wideout Jalen Tolbert in the end zone on fourth and goal in the final minute. 

While Sunday night wasn’t his best showing, Fields’ overall body of work this season has been solid. He’s been largely accurate, has mostly taken care of the ball and has given the offense an added dimension with his running ability. 

Fields has been solid, but the lack of overall success from Pittsburgh’s offense (the unit is currently 26th in the NFL in scoring) has largely contributed to the team’s two-game losing streak. It has also opened the door for Wilson to take over as QB1 when he is healthy enough to do so. 

Sunday’s game is a big one for the Steelers, who are now tied with Baltimore for first place in the AFC North. It’s also a big game for Fields as it could possible be his last chance to show what he can do as the Steelers’ starting quarterback.