Russell Wilson is back in the running to be the starting quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are off to a 4-2 start with Justin Fields operating the offense.
Wilson will take first-team reps alongside Fields in preparation for facing the New York Jets in primetime on Sunday, head coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday.
“Russ proved his health last week,” Tomlin said. “We’re looking hard at it this week. It is up for consideration.”
Pittsburgh is tied for first place in the AFC North. The Steelers made a decision in the offseason to go another direction at quarterback, moving on from 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett and top backup Mason Rudolph. They combined for 10 total touchdowns — the same number Fields has through six games — in 17 regular-season games in 2023.
Wilson, 35, has started at least 14 regular-season games every season since he was drafted by the Seahawks in 2012. He was active for the first time last week at Las Vegas as the No. 2 quarterback behind Fields.
“Over the course of the week, I got comfortable with his ability to display his health,” Tomlin said of why Wilson is back in the picture.
“You knock it off to a degree just getting an in-helmet perspective on the work,” Tomlin said. “The reactions, the see-to-do, and some of those things. There’s also a totality of his resume as well that makes you more comfortable than guys with shorter resumes in that regard, in terms of his ability to play ball on a limited amount of exposure. I have that mentality about guys at other positions. Veteran players, there’s just comfort that comes with experience in those sometimes uncomfortable conversations.”
Tomlin said the Steelers are in no hurry to determine a starter, adding Wilson needs to “knock the rust off” in practice after not playing in a game since August.
Fields and Wilson competed for the starting job in training camp, when Wilson was bothered by a calf injury. Tomlin took the decision down to the final preseason game before declaring Wilson, who is still listed No. 1 on the team’s official depth chart, the starter entering Week 1.
But by midweek entering the opener at Atlanta, Wilson’s calf injury had emerged again and Fields took all of the reps with the starting offense. He’s been the QB1 for the first six games this season while Wilson was working to return, primarily in position drills.
Fields has five touchdown passes, one interception and a passer rating of 93.9. He’s also tied for fifth in the NFL with five rushing touchdowns.
