Author: Jarrett Bailey

The Steelers’ quarterback has been slinging the ball

As training camp begins to pick up steam for the Pittsburgh Steelers, so too do the respective position battles that raise the talent of those fighting for more playing time. Here are the biggest winners from Day 2 of Steelers’ camp.

QB Justin Fields

Fields continues to sling the ball and look good doing it. He got the first-team reps for a second straight practice with Russell Wilson not participating with the calf injury he is working through.

Fields hit George Pickens on a deep ball over the middle of the field that ended with Pickens doing a somersault into the end zone.

He also connected with Calvin Austin on a deep completion later on in the day, on top of getting a respectable gain on a read option play.

I know many believed this wasn’t an actual competition between Fields and Wilson entering camp. Even if that was the case, Fields is making sure everyone takes notice that he’s here to compete and win the job. He’s had a very good start to camp.

CB Beanie Bishop

Bishop continues to show why he should be the Week 1 starter at nickel. He had good coverage on Van Jefferson in seven shots to force an incompletion, and stayed tight on Calvin Austin while running a slot fade.

It certainly looks like he is the far-and-away leader thus far to be the starter in the slot.

CB Donte Jackson

Jackson had another impressive day. He had tight coverage on George Pickens downfield ad got a hand on a pass from Fields intended for Pickens to force the incompletion.

Joey Porter Jr praised Jackson after practice and gives him major praise for being a helpful teammate.

“Man, it’s so unreal,” Porter said. “The guy that you always used to watch on YouTube, or just watching his highlights, and now he’s asking you for tips and questions. It was kind of the same thing with Patrick Peterson. I was always a big fan of him, a Hall of Famer, and the fact that I got to play alongside of him last year was so unreal. I just keep getting blessed with these guys I get to play next to, so I’m just happy.”

The Steelers seemed to have found a very good running mate for Porter, and that trade is looking better by the minute.

TE Pat Freiermuth

Freiermuth is someone that’s been heavily discussed over the last few days. He caught a 20-yard pass from Fields over DeShon Elliott, and was said to be moving around the offense a ton on Day 1.

Whether he’s playing in the slot or being lined up as a traditional tight end, Freiermuth is in for a big year, and he’s showing that thus far.

WR Calvin Austin III

Hey man, I can admit when I’m wrong and it appears I was wrong about Calvin Austin.

Building off of what was a very good offseason program, Austin has made some flashy plays in camp. He caught a long ball today from Fields, which was perfectly placed over Beanie Bishop and before Minkah Fitzpatrick could get over to make a play on the ball.

The Steelers could be leaning into having Austin be the WR3 on the team and starting in the slot. If that’s the case, they may try to work Roman Wilson into being the predominant outside guy opposite of George Pickens. In any case, Austin has had a very good few months of showing that he can be a playmaker for the Steelers.

The Steelers’ QB is dealing with a calf issue

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson is not practicing for the second straight day to begin training camp. Wilson woke up yesterday dealing with soreness in his calf, which prompted head coach Mike Tomlin to play it safe and hold him out of practice. Tomlin said Wilson would be day-to-day with the calf issue.

Wilson was on the field in a Steelers baseball cap watching on, but not partaking in drills or live action, and that appears to be the case today, as well.

If all goes the same as Day 1, Justin Fields will be getting all the first-team reps while Kyle Allen and John Rhys Plumlee get second and third-team reps, respectively.

Fields took advantage of his opportunity on Thursday, connecting with Van Jefferson on a long touchdown and hitting George Pickens for a big gain, as well, during 7-on-7s.