Justin Fields is currently battling for the starting quarterback spot for the Pittsburgh Steelers ahead of the 2024 NFL season. The former Ohio State Buckeyes star player has done a good job of making the battle a real decision for head coach Mike Tomlin.
Unfortunately, Fields was not able to impress in his first preseason game of the year. He wasn’t bad, but his performance was not particularly impressive.
In the run-up to the second week of preseason training, Fields faced harsh criticism.
ESPN NFL analyst and former player Bart Scott takes issue with Fields “burping the baby,” which means Fields fondles the football when he’s trying to decide what to do with it.
Scott also made a comparison with him that does not reflect well on Fields.
“This guy keeps burping the baby. I hate when my friend Tim Tebow makes mistakes, but this reminds me of Tim Tebow in practice. You just can’t do that. When a play goes wrong, you burp the baby like that. You put the offensive tackles in a tight spot. Guys are allowing sacks and basically losing their careers because they’re burping the baby back there.”
But the criticism didn’t end there. Scott continued and attacked the young quarterback.
“It reminds me of Tim Tebow. We talk about burping the baby and how long it takes to process that. In the NFL, when you wait for a receiver to get free, you have to anticipate throwing to receivers. He doesn’t anticipate throwing, which causes his defense to collapse on the offensive line, which causes him to kind of scatter in the pocket.”
He then pointed out a major weakness that Fields had shown in the early stages of his NFL career.
“Ball security, job security, 38 fumbles since entering the NFL, five more than any other player. That’s not acceptable.”
While the criticism certainly wasn’t kind, Fields is still in a good position. He still has a chance to earn playing time in the 2024 season.
Russell Wilson is the other quarterback in the game. There’s a good chance Wilson gets the job, but Fields is putting a lot of pressure on him. If Wilson struggles, Tomlin could well turn to the former Buckeyes star.
Hopefully, Fields can finish the preseason with two strong performances. If he can do that, he could have a chance to be in the starting lineup.
Only time will tell, but we will definitely have updates on his status. Fields, just like every other former Ohio State player, will continue to receive great support from all the Buckeye faithful.
