Mike Tomlin enjoying ‘discomfort’ that comes with Steelers turning over quarterback position
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ORLANDO, Fla. — Since he last met with reporters in mid-January, Mike Tomlin has watched the only quarterback on his roster get traded in a stunning turn of events that saw the Pittsburgh Steelers acquire Russell Wilson and eventually Justin Fields.
Kenny Pickett’s departure earlier in the month guaranteed the Steelers won’t have any of their 2023 quarterbacks on the roster next season. If such a drastic change has presented an uncomfortable situation for Tomlin, it is a prospect he openly welcomes.
“I pride myself in creating discomfort for myself and others,” Tomlin said Sunday as the NFL annual meeting opened at the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando. “I’m fundamentally against comfort.”
For the fourth consecutive season, the Steelers will have a different quarterback under center when the season opens. Wilson, a nine-time Pro Bowler, will enter offseason workouts as the starter, with Fields serving as the backup and the Steelers adding a third passer later in free agency or the draft.
Barring injury, Wilson will follow in the footsteps of Ben Roethlisberger, Mitch Trubisky and Pickett as the Steelers quarterback at the outset of the season.
“Russell is in the pole position,” Tomlin said. “I think his body of work justifies that. From the conversations with Justin, I know he’s excited about learning from Russell and maybe learning some of those veteran tricks of the trade.”
Tomlin, though, said Fields, a former first-round pick who started 38 games over three seasons with the Chicago Bears, will get his share of work in preparation for training camp. The decision to anoint Wilson as the starter “provides clarity for all involved,” Tomlin said.
“Russell is the veteran, he has a proven process of readiness, he’s been in the league a long time, and he’s capable of rallying the troops — receivers, tight ends, running backs, etc.,” Tomlin added. “He has a lot of experience to be the guy over the course of a 12-month calendar, and I think that is something a younger guy like Justin can learn from.
“Rest assured, when it’s time to compete, Justin will be given a chance to compete, and we’ll allow those guys to sort it out.”
When Tomlin spoke in January after the Steelers’ wild-card playoff loss at Buffalo, which took place with Mason Rudolph at quarterback, the coach said the team’s 2024 quarterback was already on the roster. On Sunday, he didn’t describe the organization’s seismic shift away from Pickett as “dramatic” from a “perception standpoint.”
A day after general manager Omar Khan sent Pickett to Philadelphia, he acquired Fields from the Bears. By that point, Rudolph already had signed with Tennessee.
“We knew we had to acquire some talent at the position,” Tomlin said. “We studied the field and levels of available candidates in the field. We zeroed in on Russell and Justin among them. The goal was to get one guy initially. Through conversation and work — I can’t give Omar enough credit — we were able to acquire both guys.”
The Pickett trade came just days after Wilson agreed to a one-year contract with the Steelers. Pickett’s frustration with the prospect of backing up Wilson led to the deal with the Eagles.
“From his perspective, he felt like a change of scenery would be a good thing,” Tomlin said. “When we felt the trajectory of business with Chicago moving in the right direction, those dominoes started falling.”
Tomlin declined to address specifics of conversations he had with Pickett before the trade.
“It’s water under the bridge at this point,” he said. “I’m excited about the guys we have in the room, and I know he’s excited about his opportunity and fresh start in Philadelphia.”
Given all the change at quarterback, Tomlin finds himself in a position similar to the one he was in two years ago after Roethlisberger’s retirement. That uncertainty is heightened by another change at offensive coordinator, with Arthur Smith joining the Steelers after three seasons as the Atlanta Falcons head coach.
“I’m excited about being uncomfortable,” he said. “There is growth in that. It’s good to be on edge, good to have that anxiety or urgency associated with not knowing. That is the benefit you get sometimes when you bring in someone new with new ideas from the outside.”