It's not all his fault, but Justin Fields is discovering why leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers was a bad decision. Mike Tomlin appeared eager to move on from Fields and Russell Wilson this past offseason to pursue Aaron Rodgers as the quarterback in 2025. Tomlin got his wish, and it forced Fields and Wilson to sign elsewhere in free agency, leading to mixed results this season.
Pittsburgh has a bumpy 3-1 record with Rodgers at the helm, while Wilson got benched and Fields hasn't won a game yet this year. It was an awkward divorce between the Steelers and their quarterbacks last season, but many thought Fields could recover his career with the New York Jets. They are a young and upcoming team, but things have started to collapse in a hurry.
It probably makes Fields miss being a part of the Steelers, even if it's just a little.
The Jets hold a 0-5 record heading into the sixth week of the NFL season. That record does not reflect the quality of play that Fields has shown during his first year in New York. While he is producing solid numbers, one thing continues to haunt the draft bust: he cannot win enough games. At the end of the day, winning football games is what matters most for quarterbacks.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers' QB Justin Fields could struggle to keep his starting job
During his six starts with the Steelers, Fields didn’t put up flashy numbers, but he did lead the team to a 4–2 record before the switch to Wilson as the starter. It's a tough outcome for the former first-rounder. While he's now putting up bigger numbers, the wins aren't coming. New York doesn't match Pittsburgh's talent level, especially on the defensive side of the ball.
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Fields doesn't deserve to lose his job right now, but you cannot deny how he used the Steelers' fantastic defense last season as a crutch. He protected the football and executed safe, coach-directed plays to help win games. Now that he has free rein with the Jets, his production has increased, but he still struggles to win like he did with the Chicago Bears organization.
They could think that switching out the signal caller will produce better results.
Now that the Jets sit at a winless record, which is the only remaining winless team in the NFL, things could become desperate. They just paid Fields a handsome contract this past offseason, and he hasn't warranted being benched yet, but they might have to. When losses continue to stack up, a first-time Head Coach might feel a change at the quarterback spot is necessary.
It's not on Fields, as he hasn't been playing poorly for the most part. His defensive counterparts have been terrible. There's no denying his struggles to win games in the NFL, a consistent issue throughout his career. New York will keep him as their starting quarterback for now, but once jobs are on the line, that could change in a hurry.