Quarterback Justin Fields was not in the country when he made his choice to sign a two-year deal with the New York Jets instead of stay with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Now back from vacation, Fields has begun to explain his decision making to the media.
On March 18, he told newyorkjets.com’s Ethan Greenberg the top reason he elected to join the Jets was first-year head coach Aaron Glenn.
“I think, No. 1, Coach Glenn,” Fields said. “I’ve played against him early in my career. I know how passionate he is about the game, the way he coaches, the way his players play. So I think that was the biggest thing for me.”
Fields added a few other things that drew him to New York.
“And just the opportunity, the fans, of course, the city. When you win here, there’s no better place to win. Those reasons are ultimately why I ended up here.”
Money, Garrett Wilson Other Potential Factors in Justin Fields’ Free Agency Decision
NFL players don’t usually say money is a reason to sign with a team in free agency. But it’s naive to believe that isn’t a big factor.
Fields signed a two-year, $40 million contract to join the Jets. The deal included $30 million guaranteed.
CBS Sports’ Aditi Kinkhabwala reported on March 10 the Steelers’ offer didn’t have any guaranteed money after the first season. Pittsburgh also reportedly offered Fields a two-year agreement.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler provided an update that differed slightly from Kinkhabwala’s report. Fowler reported on March 18 the Steelers made a “very competitive” offer for Fields.
“They put together an offer for Justin Fields that I was told was very competitive with what the Jets offered him,” Fowler said, via PennLive’s Nick Farabaugh. “Something went off where he chose the Jets and he must’ve felt the love more from the Jets than he did the Steelers.”
Fowler, though, didn’t provide specifics.
Other than money, Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson was likely a factor in Fields’ decision as well. Fields and Wilson played two seasons together at Ohio State from 2019-20.
Wilson averaged 15.8 yards per catch during those two campaigns. In the 2020 season, Wilson posted 43 catches for 723 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 16.8 yards per catch in only eight games.
Fields Lost Trust in Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin?
In his first interview talking about his free agency decision, Fields made the choice more about the Jets positives than the potential Steelers negatives.
But Steelers fans seeing Fields’ response will likely still wonder why he didn’t consider the Steelers equal to the Jets in some of the quarterbacks considerations. The one factor that sticks out the most is head coach.
Fields had a lot of positive things to say about the Steelers coaching staff during his one season in Pittsburgh. It’s possible nothing has changed, and that he just has a longer relationship with Glenn.
But some pundits have questioned whether Fields felt burned by Tomlin’s benching after beginning the season 4-2.
Granted, it appeared to be the correct decision at first. Russell Wilson won six of his first seven games as Pittsburgh’s starter. But the Steelers ended the season on a five-game losing streak.
Now this offseason, the Steelers lost Fields and don’t appear interested in re-signing Wilson.
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