We're old enough to remember when the Pittsburgh Steelers wanted to bring Justin Fields back as their starter in 2025.
Rumors suggested the Steelers wanted to bring Fields back for another season and even made him an offer, even though it was quite obvious he was nothing special over his six starts in Pittsburgh last year.
However, the New York Jets made Fields an offer, also, and the veteran quarterback ultimately decided to choose the Jets over the Steelers. New York's offer shockingly included $30 million guaranteed.
"At the end of the day, I was just excited of what the Jets had going on here with AG [Aaron Glenn] and just with the coaching staff, so it didn't really have anything to do with Pittsburgh," Fields said of his decision to sign with the Jets.
Fields didn't have to wait long for a revenge game, as the Steelers and Jets played in Week 1.
In that contest, Fields played well, completing 16-of-22 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown while adding 12 carries for 48 yards and another two scores.
Unfortunately for Fields, it has been all downhill from there and he has played a big role in the Jets' league-worst passing attack.
Now, New York has made the decision everyone has been waiting for, as it's being reported that the Jets are benching Fields in favor of veteran Tyrod Taylor.
"The Jets are making a quarterback change, benching Justin Fields in favor of veteran Tyrod Taylor, per source. New York faces Baltimore in Week 12 and ranks last in the league in passing yards per game," The Athletic's Dianna Russini said.
Reports suggested this was a possibility for a few weeks, but Taylor suffered a knee injury that prevented it from happening the first time, and then Fields bought himself another week with a strong performance in Week 8.
But after coming out of the bye in Week 10, Fields has reverted to his putrid play, which led to the Jets making the switch ahead of Week 12.
As Fields has struggled in 2025, Aaron Rodgers has proven to be quite the upgrade over both he and fellow 2024 Steelers starter, Russell Wilson, who didn't last past Week 3 as the starter with the New York Giants before he was benched.
Wilson has since been demoted yet again after the Giants named Jameis Winston as the starter in the wake of Jaxson Dart's concussion.
Now, nobody is going to say Rodgers has been perfect and there are certainly issues with the Steelers' offense this season. But there is no denying Pittsburgh would be far worse off had they kept either Wilson or Fields in 2025.
The Steelers should be thanking the Jets for helping them avoid what would have been a huge mistake.
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