Recently acquired Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Justin Fields took reps with the first-team offense during the team's training camp session on Thursday (July 25) amid Russell Wilson's calf injury.
Head coach Mike Tomlin ruled out Wilson, 35, after he alerted the coaching staff of his injury.
"Starts aren't always ideal, but that's like life, man," Tomlin said via ESPN. "Russ woke up today, his calf was tight. It was my decision to sit him down today, create a little short-term discomfort for him, not allowing a small problem to become a bigger problem."
Fields, 25, acquired in a trade with the Chicago Bears earlier this year, was alerted of the elevation in a text sent to him by Steelers quarterback coach Tom Arth.
"He said, 'be ready to take some rep for the one today,'" Fields said, noting that he was reviewing the playbook prior to going to bed, via ESPN. "But's good to face some short-term memory, some adversity, and some stuff that's not expected because we're going to face things in games that aren't expected. It's about how we react to those situations and how we adjust."
Fields was acquired in exchange for a conditional sixth-round pick that can become a fourth-round pick. The trade came days after the Steelers signed Wilson and released 2022 former first-round pick Kenny Pickett.
Wilson is expected to be the Steelers' starting quarterback with Fields serving as his backup. Fields was selected by the Bears at No. 11 overall in the 2021 Draft and went 10-28 in 38 starts and threw for 6,674 yards, 40 touchdowns and 30 interceptions on 578 of 958 passing, while recording 2,220 yards and 14 touchdowns on 356 rushing attempts during his three seasons in Chicago.
The trade cleared the way for the Bears to use the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on former USC quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams.
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