Justin Fields impressed the Steelers coaching staff through two weeks.
Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith spoke about Fields' performance as the team's starting quarterback in place of the injured Russell Wilson this week.
“What's been really encouraging to me is his pocket presence. The pocket gets dirty and he's still standing there. He's throwing some big passes across the field. It's really encouraging,” Smith said, according to Steelers.com.
Fields has helped the Steelers to a 2-0 start, passing for 273 yards and a touchdown, plus 84 yards on the ground and not losing the ball.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, during his press conference on Wednesday, also spoke highly of Fields, who spent the first three seasons of his career with the Bears before moving to Pittsburgh in the offseason.
“He loves to compete,” Tomlin told reporters on Wednesday. “He has a quiet confidence. He's the same no matter what the environment. There's a clarity in the way he communicates and responds to communication that's really comfortable.”
The Steelers traded for Fields in March, sending a conditional sixth-round pick to the Bears in exchange for the quarterback.
Just days earlier, the team had signed Wilson as a free agent, setting up what is likely to be one of the most intense position battles in the NFL.
The Ohio State product was expected to be the backup playmaker in Pittsburgh after Wilson won the starting spot in the preseason, but an untimely calf injury sidelined Wilson to open the season.
Tomlin hasn't said exactly what he'll do at the quarterback position once Wilson is healthy, but Fields appears to be getting more attention than he has during the preseason.
Fields and the Steelers will face the Chargers in their home opener on Sunday.
