The cliche "a tale of two halves" never rang more true than Sunday afternoon at Acrisure Stadium.
After getting a total of six rushing yards from his top two backs, and seeing the line in front of him struggle to generate any sort of consistency, Justin Fields came out swinging in the second half, putting up his best game as a Steeler and ending the QB discussion for the time being.
But when asked after the game about what triggered such a response, Fields had a clear answer:
Pittsburgh Steelers HC Mike Tomlin.
Fields credits Tomlin for second-half rally
"We knew what kind of game we were going to be in, and we knew that we didn't play well enough in the first half," Fields said after the game. "We knew we were better than that. Tomlin challenged us at halftime to play better and be better, and we came out in the second half and did just that. It was good.”
The challenge was accepted, and by all parties, as the Steelers would go on to rush for 114 yards after a total of 14 in the first half. Justin Fields went 25 of 32 for 245 yards and two TDs, and perhaps even more impressively, the defense allowed a total of -5 yards from the Chargers over the final two quarters.
It can't be ignored that the Chargers were down both of their tackles and Justin Herbert for a good portion of the second half, but LA's defense was largely intact and Justin Fields showed why he is the starting QB going forward, noting a calmness and peace in his game right now:
"Just overall seeing the field," said Fields when asked about his growth. "I feel like I'm just very calm out there, cool, calm and collected on the field, and really just that sense of peace out there on the field and not really rushing things and turning in my brain. I'm staying calm in the pocket, just making plays when I can and just doing my job."
Through two weeks, Fields had managed to do just enough to keep the team afloat, allowing the defense to take care of games by playing smart on offense.
But Sunday in Pittsburgh was different.
Fields put the team on his back despite injuries to his starting right tackle, left guard and WR #2. He went throw for throw with Justin Herbert prior to Herbert's departure, and then when his team needed him the most, he blew the game open with what was the best play of his young Steelers career:
So Russell Wilson might be Mike Tomlin's guy, but short of a team mutiny, the Steelers are all but required to roll with Fields as long as he plays the way he did Sunday.
Because make no mistake about it, if that is the version of Justin Fields that shows up consistently, the Steelers can compete with any team in the league, barring none.
