Justin Fields to start for Steelers as Russell Wilson ailing

Justin Fields will start for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the season opener in Atlanta, the team announced 90 minutes before kickoff on Sunday.

Fields got the nod against the Falcons over Russell Wilson, who was placed on the inactive list as he deals with an ongoing calf issue.

The Steelers brought in the veteran Wilson and Fields, entering his fourth season, to battle to replace the traded Kenny Pickett. Head coach Mike Tomlin named Wilson as the starter, but the training camp calf injury has slowed Wilson.

Wilson was limited in practice on both Thursday and Friday with calf tightness and was listed as questionable on the injury report.

Wilson, 35, was named to the Pro Bowl in nine of his 10 seasons (2012-21) with the Seattle Seahawks. Traded to the Denver Broncos before the 2022 season in a blockbuster deal, Wilson went 11-19 as a starter with Denver and was released earlier this year.

In 188 career starts, Wilson has posted a 115-72-1 record. He's thrown for 43,653 yards and 334 touchdowns to go with 106 interceptions and has engineered 39 game-winning drives.

He has also rushed for 5,307 yards and added 29 touchdowns.

Fields was the No. 11 overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Bears, but Chicago decided to move on from the 25-year-old after three seasons.

He has a 10-28 record in 40 games (38 starts) and has thrown for 6,674 yards with 40 TDs and 30 interceptions. He has rushed for 2,220 yards and 14 scores.

--Field Level Media