Dianna Russini and Chase Daniel shared some insights during the premiere of their Scoop City Podcast last Tuesday, addressing many fans’ questions about Justin Fields. There has been speculation about how the Steelers would use Justin Fields, and it seems we may have received part of the answer.

Their podcast explored how Arthur Smith could use Justin Fields, even though they didn’t interview Fields or Smith. Some might say that their entire podcast presentation was nothing but speculation.

However, Russini and Daniel discussed this in conjunction with a report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. According to his report, Smith might take a page or two from the playbook he used in Tennessee.
How the Steelers may utilize Fields.

How the Steelers may use Justin Fields

According to Fowler, Smith utilized Derrick Henry as a quarterback/runner in Tennessee. Considering Fields’ impressive running skills, it’s logical for Smith to design a playbook that maximizes his abilities. To support his claim, Fowler mentioned that several other teams anticipate Smith using Fields as both a runner and a passer in goal-line scenarios.

Suppose his report is accurate, and other teams are prepping for this possibility. In that case, fans should expect to see Fields and Wilson simultaneously on the field or swap quarterbacks on specific play designations. Russini and Daniel then went on to explain how they envision the usage of Fields.

Since their view is that there is a 100% chance of Smith being involved, per Fowler’s report, the question is, what sort of specialized packages should fans anticipate? Smith could use Fields strictly in rushing packages or gadget passing plays.

If you could lay money on the sort of packages we might see, the most logical option would be a run-pass option. The Steelers could have much success using RPOs as if the defense bites on the run; then Fields passes, or vice versa.

It seems like Smith has some plans involving Fields. The real question is how frequently we’ll see Fields in action. Will it happen only 2-3 times throughout the season, or will it be more like 10-15? Part of the answer depends on how quickly Mike Tomlin wants to introduce Fields in his offense, and the other part depends on how well Fields performs.

If every time they use him turns into a disaster, this experiment won’t last long. On the other hand, they don’t want to use him too much, so they can catch some teams napping in critical moments.

The takeaway is to expect to see Fields in action beyond that as a Steelers quarterback. How often is it slightly open-ended? The fun takeaway here is that whereas Kordell Steward began as the original Slash and Justin Fields could become Slash 2.0.