Ex-NFL GM Demands Mike Tomlin to Declare Steelers’ Starting QB With Justin Fields Being Ahead of Russell Wilson

The Steelers’ QB drama just took a sharp turn. Team Pittsburgh brought in two talented starting QBs this offseason. Now, the inevitable discussion as to which one will start is gaining traction. Former Jets’ GM Mike Tannenbaum wants the head coach to name his starter QB. The question is: Justin Fields or Russell Wilson.

The Bears agreed to trade QB Fields to the Steelers in exchange for the 2025 fifth-round draft pick this March. Likewise, Wilson joined the team as a 2024 QB starter after the Broncos cut bait with him. With two excellent quarterbacks on board, the head coach has to decide who the starting QB will be. 

Experience vs. Potential: Can the young QB outshine the veteran star?

The signing of both Fields and Wilson to the Steelers is one of the team’s biggest moves. The ex-Bears QB is ten years younger than veteran Russell Wilson. While this solidifies that Pittsburgh has had a franchise QB for a decade, Wilson, 35, only has a few years left. 

The former Dolphins and Jets GM urges head coach Mike Tomlin to select a starting QB for the team. Expressing his bias, he said Tomlin should be supporting Justin Fields to replace Russell Wilson as the Steelers’ starting QB. Per Tannebaum, “I think you have to declare who your quarterback is and move forward… If I’m Justin Fields, I am dying to win this job, because if I do, it just changes the trajectory of my career.“

Talking about Wilson, the Jets GM said that Russell Wilson deserves a lot of credit as well. He’s a passionate player, but he’s much closer to the end of his career. Tannenbaum explained, “If Mike Tomlin was telling the obvious truth, of course, they’re going to root for Justin Fields because of his age. If they hit on him, they have their quarterback for the next decade.” 

According to Ryan Clark, a former colleague of Tannenbaum’s on ESPN and free safety for the Steelers, the team should aim for Justin Fields. He stated in a March Get Up interview, “I want Justin Fields to win because that gives me an opportunity to have a quarterback of the future. Not a bridge guy. Not a guy on the back end of his career, but a young talented quarterback that needs the right pieces around him, who showed signs of being very good late last year.”

Both Tannenbaum and Clark want the young QB to surpass Wilson since it would indicate that they have found their future quarterback. However, it’s ultimately up to head coach Mike Tomlin as to who the starting QB for the 2024 NFL off-season will be. 

Coach Tomlin’s calculated approach to naming a starting QB   

With Justin Fields and Russell Wilson joining the Steelers, the head coach has already announced that one of his new acquisitions will be starting in the offseason. Tomlin has decided that Wilson will have the “pole position,” but Fields will also “have the opportunity to compete” when the time’s right. 

In an NFL league meeting, Tomlin asserted that he’d been extremely transparent about the order. Addressing the team’s free agency additions for the first time, he said, “Russell is a veteran. He’s got a proven process of readiness. He’s been in this league a long time. He’s capable of rallying troops, receivers, tight ends, running backs, et cetera.”

Tomlin said Justin Fields has also expressed enthusiasm about working alongside Wilson and taking notes from the nine-time Pro Bowl selection and Super Bowl winner. Overall, it will be interesting to watch Fields and Wilson compete for the starting QB position.