Despite 35-year-old Russell Wilson being named Mike Tomlin‘s “Pole Position” for the quarterback position for the Pittsburgh Steelers, he’s not been able to get any game time so far this season. That’s owing to a calf injury he aggravated in training, apparently during a sled pushing exercise. In his absence, 25-year-old Justin Fields started for the Steelers game against the Atlanta Falcons and performed admirably. With a 156-yard game, Fields led the Steelers to a comfortable 18-10 win.

So, is Fields set to start against the Denver Broncos this Sunday? It certainly looks that way, after Mike Tomlin labeled Wilson “questionable” for the game. So why is Russell Wilson flying into Denver, and how will that affect things on the ground?

The Wilson-Fields equation

Writing for NBC, Mike Florio questioned the reasoning behind Russell Wilson making the journey. Generally, players who are deemed questionable for a game wouldn’t bother traveling to the venue, instead just sitting the game out. Flying him to Denver just to bench him all over again seems almost like a waste of time. Speaking about the fact he was in Atlanta last week too, Florio pointed out, “Some who saw him in uniform asked a fairly obvious question. If he’s healthy enough to dress, how is he not healthy enough to play?”

All the communication from Mike Tomlin and the Steelers has suggested that the competition between the quarterbacks is purely healthy. It seems to have been Tomlin’s intention to have both start in roughly an equal amount of games over the season. With Wilson’s injury ruling him out for the time being, Fields will no doubt be quick to stake his primary claim to the spot though. As Wilson flies into Denver, tension between the two in the locker room might prove an obstacle to the Steelers’ success on the field, as some commentators have been quick to point out.

Florio points out that it might have been a placating move. Wilson clearly wants to play, he’s tired of being a benchwarmer. He went on to say, “At some point, he’ll get frustrated. At some point, someone close to Wilson might start leaking fuel for Sunday Splash! reports. Possibly with the goal of getting Wilson traded to a place where he’d have a chance to play.” But is he that desperate yet? Certainly Fields won’t be happy to see the man some would call his rival in the locker room. It would take the joy out of the post match celebration, assuming there would be one. Regardless of the result on Sunday, Wilson will be hoping to stake his claim to some game time this season.

Will Fields hold his nerve against the Broncos?

Russell Wilson might have been looking forward to the Broncos game as a sort of “revenge game.“ They did, after all, bench the 35-year-old, premature last season, out of concern they’d have to pay out his injury clause if anything happened. Will Fields have the same intensity against the Broncos as Wilson would have done? Some would say he’ll be even fiercer. Better than any revenge motive is the drive of a young man to prove himself on the field. And Justin Fields is just such a young man.

Speaking to the press after the Falcons game, he said, “I have a mindset of ‘anything can happen,’ so I’ve just got to be ready, ready for anything.” Coming into the Broncos game having won their last one, Fields’ Steelers will be at an advantage. The Broncos lost their week 1 game against the Seattle Seahawks 26-20, and though it wasn’t a whitewash, it’ll put a chip on their shoulders. The prospects are looking good for the Steelers, led by the young and dynamic Fields. Tune in this Sunday to see how the game goes.