Justin Fields Already Disagreeing With Steelers Coaches

The Justin Fields era in Chicago officially came to an end this spring when the Bears traded him to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a conditional sixth-round pick. The Bears are in a much better situation now with No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams at the helm. However, there is still plenty of interest among the fanbase about what the future will hold for Fields.

It is currently unclear whether Fields will be a starter in Pittsburgh. The consensus for now is that Russell Wilson will begin the year as QB1, so the Steelers have been trying to find different ways to give Fields a bigger role.

One of those ways was potentially using him as a kick returner. With the increased importance of returns under new kickoff rules, the Steelers special teams coordinator Danny Smith reportedly floated the idea of having Fields in that role.

Fields finally addressed that idea, refuting any possibility that he would be used on special teams as a return man.

Justin Fields Refusing to Return Kickoffs for Steelers

Speaking to Pittsburgh Post-Gazette earlier this week, Fields called the whole thing a misinterpretation, saying it was mostly a joke that was taken too seriously.

"Nah, I’m not here to do that. It was kind of a joke, to be honest with you. Coach Danny was basically just trying to send a message that no matter who you are, you could be on special teams. He just used that as an example."

- Justin Fields

This was always unlikely. Having your backup QB as your kick returner is extremely unlikely. Teams would be very hesitant to put a young quarterback in that situation, even under new kickoff rules. Fields is a serious threat with the ball in his hands but having him return kicks would put him in too much of a harm's way, especially when the team already has Cordarrelle Patterson on the roster.

It is still interesting to see Fields vehemently disagree with the coaching staff. He could have said something to demonstrate his willingness to do anything the team asked him to do. Instead, he flat-out showed an unwillingness to play a different role for his new team, which is perhaps not the ideal start to the rest of his career.

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