Najee Harris defends Justin Fields after Mike Tomlin benched him for Russell Wilson as Steelers starter for Jets game on SNF
Steelers RB Najee Harris said they've been backing Justin Fields, so Tomlin's decision to bench him for Russell Wilson, who hasn't played yet, left him confused.
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Justin Fields and Najee Harris (Image via IMAGO/ X)
Despite leading the Steelers to a 4-2 start with 106 completions and more than 1300 all-purpose yards, 10 touchdowns, and only 1 interception, Mike Tomlin decided to bench Justin Fields in favor of veteran Russell Wilson. It came as a surprise for many, and even the locker room left scratching their heads, including RB Najee Harris.
Even though Fields did not have much success throwing the ball, he more than made up with his legs. It brought back the spark that the Steelers lacked since Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement. At this point, it looked certain that Fields would continue to start games until earlier this week.
Head coach Mike Tomlin made the decision to give Wilson a chance to play. This caught everyone off guard, especially the offense, who looked comfortable with Fields under center.
I think he did a really good job, and he shouldn’t. Well, I know what he was trying to do, but just me saying publicly that we’re all proud of him. Don’t be so hard on yourself. We got your back.
Najee Harris said on Thursday after the Steelers latest practice
‘I think he did a really good job’
— 93.7 The Fan (@937theFan) October 17, 2024
Najee Harris talks Justin Fields pic.twitter.com/GWqWpP8F2n
Mike Tomlin revealed the reason behind benching Justin Fields
Starting Wilson while playing their best football raised many questions. If Arthur Smith’s system fits Fields so well, what happened after the Steelers’ win over the Raiders that led Tomlin and Smith to decide a change was necessary?
Mike Tomlin answered all the questions. From his view, Fields adapted to Smith’s playbook really quickly and did remarkably well in the first six weeks of football. Tomlin praised the Ohio State graduate for scoring a couple of rushing touchdowns in the last game, but he also wants to give others a chance too.
Justin [Fields] has been really good, and we’ve been really good at times, but not to be confused with great. This is a competitive league. We’re trying to position ourselves to be that team, and we got to play with talent with which we haven’t had an opportunity to play. So we’re going to potentially explore those things.
Mike Tomlin said
Justin Fields very candid today: “I don’t think I played good enough if I’m being real with you.
— Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) October 17, 2024
“If I’m being real with myself, if I did play well enough, I don’t think there would be any sort of (question) who should be playing who should not.” pic.twitter.com/8eW7hH75f6
Even Fields believes that he still has a few more gears he can tap into, which has been lacking so far.
I don’t think I played good enough… if I did play well enough, I don’t think there would be any sort of who should be playing and who should not. At the end of the day, I got a few wins. Of course, I’m glad about that, but there’s areas that I could be better at.
Justin Fields said (H/T: ESPN)
Fields joined the Steelers after spending the first three years with the Chicago Bears. There he played a total of 40 games and had 578 completions for 6674 passing yards, 40 touchdowns, and 30 interceptions.
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Ishan Misra
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