Mike Tomlin disappointed with Justin Fields’ fumbles in Steelers debut

After the Steelers dropped their preseason opener to the Texans, coach Mike Tomlin proclaimed that his team committed too many self-inflicted wounds. He honed in on a couple of early drives that were shaken up bad exchanges between Justin Fields and center Nate Herbig.

Fields made his first start wearing a Steelers uniform Friday night. Although Russell Wilson came into camp as the presumed starter, Fields has gotten most of the first-team reps because of Wilson’s strained calf.

“I thought (Fields) did some nice things, but obviously he was a component of the C-Q (center-quarterback) exchange,” Tomlin told reporters after the game. “From my perspective, that’s dual responsibility on the center and the quarterback.

“It negated a lot of good things going on in those first couple of drives.”

There was no immediate harm from the fumbled exchanges. The Steelers kept possession on both. But the muffed plays helped stall each of the first two drives. It is preseason. And while the coaches don’t dwell on the score, they do focus on moments that can translate into the regular season. That’s why fumbles are a big deal.

After a change at center, Steelers’ offense still was shaky

It played into why Tomlin said this: “We work too hard to have the results we had … so it’s disappointing. … Taking nothing away from the Houston Texans. It’s not about what they did. It was about the things that we didn’t do or the wounds we inflicted to ourselves.”

The Steelers made a change at center in the first half, with rookie Zach Frazier, a second-round pick, coming in for Fields’ third drive. Fields completed a 20-yard pass to fellow Steelers newcomer Van Jefferson. But the drive eventually stalled again. A third-down sack of Fields forced a punt, Pittsburgh’s third straight of the game.

Fields took the blame for the bungled exchanges.

“The snapping part, we’ve just got to be on the same page,” Fields told reporters. “I will put that on me to just be on the same page and know who’s in at center, know how to adjust and what I need to do next in the game.

“Just can’t shoot ourselves in the foot. Have to do the routine things routinely. Q-C exchange. Like I said, I think that’s the thing that stopped us when we weren’t driving the ball well. It’s not a good feeling when you’re second-and-13, second-and-14. It’s hard to score like that.”

For the game, Fields completed five of his six pass attempts for 67 yards. The Steelers then turned the game over to Kyle Allen, another new quarterback. Allen competed 17 of 23 for 193 with a touchdown and an interception.

The Steelers return to action against the Bills next Saturday. Maybe Wilson will be healthy enough to play a series or two. Or maybe Pittsburgh sticks with Fields as QB1.