Getty Image / Candice Ward
Audio By Carbonatix
Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin, the longest-tenured head coach in the league at this point, is a legend. The future Hall-of-Famer somehow gets the Pittsburgh Steelers to .500 or better every year he’s been the coach, starting in 2007.
But, it seems like he could be having troubles in the locker room after giving Russell Wilson reps with the starters during Tuesday’s practice, meaning that Justin Fields could lose his job. In fact, safety Deshon Elliott compared him to the dead leader of Al-Qaeda and one of the most evil men of the last 100 years, Osama bin Laden.
Justin Fields has started the first six games, leading the Steelers to a 4-2 record, after Russell Wilson hurt his calf at the start of training camp. Fields hasn’t been anything special, but he’s taken care of the ball and made some plays with his legs. Most importantly, the team seems to have rallied around him a bit.
On Tuesday, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that Wilson would be getting first-team reps this week and would be in line to start the team’s upcoming game against the Jets. While Tomlin was noncommittal after practice, it seems like it’s trending that way.
Apparently, veteran safety Deshon Elliott is not a fan of the move. Take a look.
DeShon Elliott with an interesting post on IG pic.twitter.com/8PsKPSn5oq
— SteelerNation (@steelernation) October 15, 2024
That has to be about Mike Tomlin’s rumored choice to replace Fields with Wilson? The team brought in both quarterbacks in the offseason, but Wilson was definitely brought in to be the starter. But, it’s tough to replace a guy who is playing decent football and winning games like Justin Fields is.
Could it be about the fact that they play the New York Jets and New York Giants the next two weeks? Maybe, but that would somehow be even more insensitive than the post is in and of itself!
It’s unknown if others in the locker room are mad about the Russell Wilson-Justin Fields scenario. Frankly, Mike Tomlin’s first concern needs to be not losing a locker room. The Steelers don’t have the talent to overcome poor team chemistry.