Justin Fields' Lackluster Steelers Debut Not A Good Sign for Bears

The Chicago Bears officially moved on from Justin Fields this offseason by trading him to the Pittsburgh Steelers. In return for Fields, the Bears received the Steelers sixth-round pick in the 2025 draft. This pick becomes a fourth-round selection if Fields plays 51% of the Steelers snaps this season.

While Fields was a starting quarterback in Chicago, he didn't walk into Pittsburgh with the same designation. Instead, Fields battled veteran quarterback Russell Wilson for the starting job during training camp and the preseason.

Although it was technically a competition for the quarterback spot, many believed that Wilson would be named the starter. This is because head coach Mike Tomlin and the Steelers had promised that when he signed. Ultimately, Tomlin did name Wilson the starter a week before the season started.

Even though Wilson was named the Week 1 starter, he had been dealing with a calf injury throughout training camp and the preseason. Wilson's calf injury was re-aggravated during the week of practice leading up to the Week 1 game against the Atlanta Falcons. This left Wilson to be a game-time decision and he ended up not being healthy enough to play, giving Fields the start.

Fields' performance against the Falcons was significant for both the Steelers and the Bears. A good performance for Fields would have increased his chances of overtaking Wilson as the starting quarterback. If Fields achieved that, he would guarantee the Bears a fourth-round pick.

Bears News: Justin Fields Has Lackluster Opening Day with Steelers

Fields' time in Chicago will be remembered for his electrifying runs and inconsistent passing. That type of play was exactly what the Steelers saw in Fields' first start. Fields began the day with a fumbled snap, something seen often during his time in Chicago, and two bad overthrows to Van Jefferson and Najee Harris.

After a rough first drive, Fields seemed to settle in and play well for the rest of the game. Fields' best throws of the game came on deep balls to George Pickens.

The first time Fields hit Pickens on a deep ball was in the second quarter and it would have been a gain of 41 yards if Pickens hadn't gotten called for an offensive pass interference.

The first Fields-to-Pickens deep ball that counted was during a two-minute drill in the second quarter. This connection went for 33 yards and put the Steelers in field goal range.

The other deep completion Fields had with Pickens was a 40-yard completion in the third quarter. This completion was the first play of a drive that led to a field goal.

Fields also hit Pickens on a nice out route for a 12-yard gain for a first down on third down in the second quarter.

While Fields finished the day with a 73.9% completion percentage (17/23), he only threw for 156 yards. Along with that even though the Steelers won 18-10 Fields failed to get the team in the endzone. That definitely wasn't what coach Tomlin was looking for after the offensive struggles the team has faced the past few seasons.

Although Fields added 57 yards on 14 carries, which is something Wilson won't be able to do at this point in his career, Fields didn't have an exceptional performance. Fields' failure to impress in his Week 1 start could cement that the Bears will only receive a sixth-round pick for him. That would be disappointing since the Bears used the 11th-overall pick on Fields.

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