Where should the Steelers Look for their next QB
The Steelers are once again in a situation where they need to decide on a quarterback for yet another season.
Pittsburgh has constantly put themselves in a position where they are heading into the off-season with uncertainty at the most important position in the sport. The Steelers made two moves last season in acquiring Justin Fields via a trade with the Bears and singing Russel Wilson after he was cut from the Denver Broncos in hopes of locking down the position for the future or at least the mid-term future.
Fields started the year due to a calf injury that hindered Wilson through the first 6 weeks of the season. During that time Fields led the Steelers to a 4-2 record seeing both losses come by 3 points.
Fields also produced 10 offensive touchdowns combined both rushing and passing as well as only throwing 1 interception.
Wilson then took over and started like a man shot out of a canon going 6-1 in his first 7 games as the Steelers starter and it certainly made head coach Mike Tomlin look like a genius.
The Steelers then started a stretch of games against all top playoff teams and a Russel Wilson fumble at the 3-yard line in the first half against a game in Baltimore changed the entire season, so it felt like.
If we are being honest it is probably not just the quarterback that is hindering the Steelers’ offensive abilities but rather the personnel and the play caller. The Steelers’ offensive scheming is atrocious, and it’s time for them to move on to someone like Eric Bieniemy who knows how to scheme players open and push the ball down the field. The Steelers need someone with some creativity in their playbooks.
Mike Tomlin’s old way of thinking is no longer the reality of what wins SuperBowls in this era of the NFL. It’s time to adapt to the times and start taking some risks with the offense.
That being said where should the Steelers look for a starting quarterback next season?
This will be broken down into three categories the “wish”, the most realistic, and what the Steelers will probably do because some things just never change.
First, the “wish” quarterback would have to be Justin Herbert. Herbert is coming off of a terrible postseason performance that saw him throw more interceptions in one game than he did the entire year. There were rumblings last season when head coach Jim Harbaugh left Michigan to come to LA and coach the Chargers that they may want to move on from Justin Herbert. Could the Chargers explore it again this offseason, sure, but it would take a lot for the Steelers to acquire him. That being said, give the Chargers whatever they want for the soon-to-be 27-year-old franchise QB.
The realistic competent of this off-season and what the Steelers should do is bring back Justin Fields as he is still only heading into his age 26 season and hire Eric Bieniemy. Let Fields throw, and let him use his legs as a weapon. In today’s NFL you need a dual-threat quarterback and Justin Fields has once run for over a thousand yards in a season. Sign Fields, develop him, get him some real weapons, and get him an offensive-minded playcaller because the 26-year-old just might be the answer at QB for the Steelers.
What the Steelers should do and what they’ll do is another story. The Steelers will probably retain Arthur Smith and bring back Russel Wilson leading them straight to another Wild Card round blowout.
The Steelers once again have a lot to do this off-season. They should consider doing things they don’t usually do considering the fact the team hasn’t won a playoff game in almost a decade.
