Insiders detail big change in Steelers' Justin Fields, Russell Wilson situation

Justin Fields is on track to remain the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback through this coming Sunday's game at the 1-2 Indianapolis Colts as veteran Russell Wilson continues to recover from the calf injury that kept him out of action across the season's first three weeks. 

It was thought as recently as this past weekend that Wilson could reclaim the starting job whenever he is cleared to play. According to updates offered by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano on Wednesday, that may no longer be the case. 

"Fields continues to build momentum in Pittsburgh," Fowler explained. "When someone on the sidelines is yelling 'QB1' to him after a score, he's in a secure spot with his 3-0 team. ...My sense after asking around is that Fields might have graduated from the play-until-you-lose phase to gain the freedom to play through mistakes, within reason."

Fields was far from perfect while guiding the Steelers to three straight victories. According to Pro Football Reference, he began Wednesday ranked 21st in the NFL among qualified players with a 47.4 adjusted QBR and 28th with an average of 172.7 passing yards per game. He's tossed only two touchdown passes and one interception this season, but the 2021 first-round draft pick has also largely avoided the kind of mistakes that sunk his Chicago Bears tenure after just three campaigns. 

"The Steelers have been very happy with Justin Fields' performance at quarterback, including the way he has executed the game plans and been able to take on more and more as the weeks have gone on," Graziano said. "They believe their young group is learning how to win, and Fields looks like the starter for the foreseeable future."

While Fowler noted that "the Steelers saw Wilson hold better command of the offense than Fields in the preseason," the NFL insider added that the 35-year-old's calf problem "is no joke" and has the signal-caller "simply not moving at a high clip at this point."  

As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Steelers as 1.5-point favorites against the Colts. Unless Fields produces a complete dud at Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium, it sounds like Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin would be comfortable keeping the 25-year-old atop the depth chart for the Week 5 game against the Dallas Cowboys (1-2).