With new quarterback Russell Wilson ramping up his practices this week, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said the veteran will get the start in Saturday night's preseason game against the Buffalo Bills at Acrisure Stadium.
Wilson, signed in free agency by the Steelers in the offseason, missed the team's preseason opener last week against the Houston Texans with a strained calf.
A nine-time Pro Bowl player, the 35-year-old Wilson is new to the Steelers, but not the NFL. But Tomlin would like to see his new quarterback play.
"Russ is scheduled to participate if he has no setbacks," Tomlin said Thursday at Acrisure Stadium following a joint practice with the Bills. "It's been a good week. He's been a full participant. He's had a couple really good days. With each passing day, it is less of an issue, and so we look forward to him participating in this home venue. Our mindset regarding the first team … last week, they played about two series, roughly, offensively and defensively.
"We have a mindset of playing roughly four this time around, but that's subject to change based on what it is that we see. If they're highly effective and productive and we get good quality work, we might move on from them to get more of an exposure to the other guys, and so that's a template in which we work. It's not etched in stone."
With Wilson sidelined last week, Justin Fields got the opportunity to start against the Texans. Fields was acquired in an offseason trade with the Chicago Bears.
Fields and the first-team offense failed to score in the three possessions in which he participated, and two possessions resulted in botched quarterback-center exchanges.
That is one of the many things Tomlin wants to see be better this week.
"We're looking for more cleanliness," Tomlin said. "We didn't play to our liking last time from a penalty standpoint in some instances, particularly pre-snap things and some fundamental things, (center-quarterback) exchanges, Steelers beating Steelers, we're not into that. We need to clean all of those things up, those pre-snap things, those things that are 100 percent controllable.
"I'm looking for big time cleanliness there. I'm looking for better possession-down football."
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To that point, the Bills provide another quality opponent against which to work.
The Steelers held a joint practice at Acrisure Stadium against the Bills on Thursday and will now get a chance to take some of the work done in that setting into Saturday's game.
"We had a really productive practice," Tomlin said. "They're different than us in some ways, and that's what made the work really good. We are 3-4 (defensive) structure. They are 4-3 structure. So I'd imagine that was good for both offensive lines to see those different structures and get a couple of days' work, as opposed to one day's work with it."
