After the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 20-10 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, quarterback Justin Fields was asked if he feels like he’s “proving [his] detractors wrong” by starting out 3-0 following the trade away from the Chicago Bears.
“I’m not really worried about that,” Fields responded during his postgame press conference. “I’m more so into proving myself right.”
“I know what kind of player I am,” the Steelers QB went on. “I haven’t changed, kind of my whole life. So, at the end of the day, my teammates help me be great so shout out to them, shout out to our defense, shout out to everybody else on the offense for pushing me each and every day of practice.”
Fields added that he’s “definitely glad and feeling good to be in this position” with the Steelers.
“[Starting 3-0] means a lot,” the quarterback acknowledged later. “But at the end of the day, it’s not just me winning games, it’s the whole team. So, I’m just happy to be a part of this team. Happy to be a part of this organization.”
Justin Fields Continues to Play Winning Football With Steelers
Although Fields has yet to blow the NFL world away, he’s played winning football early on and that continued against the Chargers.
Fields finished with his best passing total of the year at 245 yards and a touchdown through the air. He also took the ball into the end zone himself, rushing for 6 yards and a TD. Plus, Fields was incredibly efficient as a passer with a 78.1 completion percentage.
The former first-round talent did make one mistake on September 22, forcing a short pass which was tipped and eventually intercepted, but it was an otherwise strong performance.
“[The defender] just matched the stick route way too fast, and I just shouldn’t have thrown the ball,” Fields said after the game, regarding his interception. “Got tipped, but at the end of the day, either should have worked the other side of the field [and] thrown it to the flat because they were so soft, or just throw the ball away. Especially when we were already in field goal range at the 40-yard line.”
“That can’t happen,” the Steelers signal-caller concluded. “That can’t happen again.”
Aside from the lone Week 3 turnover, Fields probably played his best outing overall versus the Chargers. As a reminder, LAC came into Pittsburgh with the top-ranked defense in the NFL in terms of points allowed.
Justin Fields Was Appreciative of Calvin Austin’s ‘YAC’ on Steelers Touchdown
Fields was also very appreciative of his teammates after the game, especially wide receiver Calvin Austin III — who had a huge outing that included a catch-and-run touchdown that went for 55 yards.
“Of course, huge play,” Fields said of Austin’s long TD. Joking that “you always appreciate the YAC — the yards after catch — [as a quarterback].”
Austin finished with four receptions for 95 yards and the aforementioned touchdown. He led the Steelers passing attack on Sunday, but it was a much more well-rounded offense in Week 3.
Najee Harris ran for 70 yards with another 16 through the air, George Pickens pitched in 57 yards, tight end Pat Freiermuth and wide receiver Scotty Miller both topped 30 receiving yards and veteran Cordarrelle Patterson rushed for another 33.
It was a balanced approach for offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, and this unit is starting to look more and more comfortable with Fields at the helm.
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