Russell Wilson ‘s balky right calf is improving. It just might not heal in time for him to wrest the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback job away from Justin Fields, at least in the short term.
Coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday he expects Wilson to see an uptick in his workload during practice this week, though Fields is expected to get the nod for a fifth straight week when Pittsburgh (3-1) hosts Dallas (2-2) on Sunday night.
The 35-year-old Wilson hasn’t played since aggravating a calf injury shortly before the season opener in Atlanta. The Steelers have brought the nine-time Pro Bowler along slowly. He felt good enough to throw during 7-on-7 drills with the scout team but it’s still uncertain when Wilson could get cleared to be a full participant.
“We will evaluate his ability to move and function and protect himself and obviously evaluate his level of productivity,” Tomlin said. “And we’ll let that be our guide in terms of whether we get into serious consideration as we push forward toward game time this week.”
Tomlin has deflected questions for weeks about whether Fields has done enough to earn the starting gig outright. He did it again Tuesday, though a little less emphatically than before.
Asked if there’s a chance he could stick with Fields as the “hot hand” much in the same fashion he did with Mason Rudolph at the end of last season as Kenny Pickett recovered from ankle surgery, Tomlin opened the door a bit.
“There’s a potential for that,” he said. “But we’re not there as I stand here today.”
That time is fast approaching, however, especially if Fields continues to improve as the weeks pass. Fields wasn’t mistake-free in a 27-24 loss to Indianapolis on Sunday, but impressed Tomlin with the way he responded after a fumble early in the second half. Fields led Pittsburgh on three straight touchdown drives to get within striking distance on a day he finished with 367 yards of total offense (312 passing, 55 rushing) and three touchdowns total (one passing,…
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Publish date : 2024-10-01 19:23:13
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