The Pittsburgh Steelers are mulling several quarterback options as the start of free agency quickly approaches, but Dan Orlovsky believes one player should take himself out of the running.
The Steelers do not yet have a viable starting quarterback under contract for 2025. They have said they want to bring back either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields, and reports have indicated they prefer the latter.
During Monday morning’s edition of “Get Up” on ESPN, Orlovsky suggested that Fields should pursue opportunities outside of Pittsburgh even if the Steelers want the former first-round pick back.
“If I’m Justin Fields, I respectfully am not going back to the Steelers,” Orlovsky said. “I did everything you asked me to do when you had me as your starting quarterback — a little bit by default, maybe, because of the injury in training camp to Russell Wilson. I had us at 4-2. We had beaten playoff teams, and then you benched me.
“Then it started really hot for Russell Wilson and then it calmed down a little bit, and you never gave me the opportunity to get back on the field. Respectfully, I want to go give myself an opportunity to play. I don’t trust, necessarily, what you’re telling me right now in this process. So if I’m Justin Fields, I want to go elsewhere.”
A lot of people were surprised when Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin made the switch from Fields to Wilson after a 4-2 start to the season. Pittsburgh then won six of Wilson’s first seven starts. They lost four straight to close out the regular season, so the results from Wilson were a mixed bag.
The Steelers all but committed to Wilson as their starter when they signed him in free agency last year. That is part of the reason Tomlin gave Wilson an opportunity to start when the former Super Bowl champion was fully recovered from his calf injury. Had Tomlin kept Wilson on the bench after all but promising the QB a starting job, Orlovsky’s argument about trustworthiness would apply to Wilson’s situation.
Fields is 10 years younger than the 36-year-old Wilson. That is probably why the Steelers are said to prefer the former Ohio State star over Wilson going forward. Though, an even older quarterback has supposedly entered the mix as well.
