Jets' Justin Fields opens up about short-lived Steelers tenure

New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields allegedly has a chip on his shoulder coming off his one-season stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers, during which he spent more time as a backup than as a starter. 

During a Tuesday appearance on the FanDuel TV "Up & Adams" program, Fields opened up about his short-lived Pittsburgh tenure. 

"Last year was something that I've never experienced throughout my life," Fields explained, as shared by Troy Montgomery of Steelers Depot. "I learned a lot from [Russell Wilson] and I learned a lot from being over there in general. I'm thankful for my time over there. I think I did need to take a step back and see it from a different perspective, not only football, but life in general. Last year was definitely good to me."

The Chicago Bears made Fields the 11th overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, and he won only 10 of 38 regular-season starts over his first three pro campaigns before he was traded to Pittsburgh last offseason. He then lost a competition for the Steelers' starting job to Wilson, but Wilson became unavailable before Week 1 due to a lingering calf problem.

With Wilson sidelined, Fields guided the Steelers to a 4-2 record. Multiple stories have since suggested head coach Mike Tomlin preferred to have a healthy Wilson in the lineup last fall, while offensive coordinator Arthur Smith reportedly favored Fields. Tomlin ultimately started Wilson from Week 7 through the playoffs, even though Pittsburgh endured a five-game losing streak from Week 15 through the wild-card round of the postseason tournament. 

Fields received a two-year, $40M deal with $30M guaranteed from the Jets in March. Roughly three months later, future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers accepted a team-friendly contract to join the Steelers. Fair or not, the perception exists that Tomlin views Rodgers as an upgrade over Fields. 

Regardless of what did and/or didn't happen behind the scenes last season, Fields suggested he took plenty of positives from his time with Pittsburgh. 

"You can't really explain it," Fields said about the Steelers' culture. "The swag, the confidence that everybody has. Just that mindset going into every game that you've put in the work, and now it's time to go out there and dominate. It reminded me of that, and just being in that winning culture. Glad I got to spend that time over there, and now I'm here, trying to implement the same thing that I saw last year."

While Tomlin has never had a losing season since he accepted the Steelers' job in 2007, the Jets have gone 14 straight years without a postseason berth. Before Fields can focus on potentially ending Gang Green's playoff drought, he'll first need to prepare for the Jets' Week 1 game against none other than the Steelers on Sept. 7.