Steelers avoided a terrible idea to fix biggest problem, and it's not Russell Wilson

The Steelers could be without quarterback Russell Wilson for the second straight week, which has opened a door for Justin Fields to take the reigns as the full-time starter. Fields played well in an 18-10 win over the Falcons in Week 1, should he do so again in Denver, it'll be tough for Tomlin to keep him out of action for the Steelers home debut against the Los Angeles Chargers.

By now fans are familiar with that storyline. Yet, that's not what we're here to discuss. In that Week 1 win over the Falcons, Steelers punter Cameron Johnston suffered a season-ending knee injury. For most teams, a punter injury wouldn't be much of a storyline, but Pittsburgh isn't most teams. Tomlin is seemingly stuck in the early-2000's with his style of play, which is predicated on running the ball and defense. Special teams has conveniently been missing from the equation thanks in part to subpar punters.

Johnston finally gave the Steelers a capable punter to pair with one of the best defenses in the NFL. Pittsburgh's success is predicated on ball control, and Johnston can flip the field with the best of them. Unfortunately, he's no longer available, so the Steelers had to roll with their backup plan.

Steelers sign a familiar face to replace Cameron Johnston, avoid disaster

The Steelers have already replaced Johnston, as Corliss Waitman will get the first shot on Sundays. Waitman is a former Steeler as well, having signed with the team as an undrafted free agent in 2020. He was released before the 2021 NFL Draft. Waitman has 103 career punts for an average of 41.6 net yards. While he's not as productive as Johnston, Waitman should give the Steelers confidence in their special teams unit moving forward.

Waitman was not a mistake, thankfully, but the Steelers easily could have made one. Former Pittsburgh punter Pressley Harvin III is available and I'd like to speak for all Steelers fans when I say 'thank you, Omar Khan.' Harvin III was often a disaster in Pittsburgh. Sure, he'd get off some booming punts every now and then, but far too often Harvin III would kick the ball of the side of his foot, flipping the field for the opposing team.

Frankly, it's not a shock the Steelers wanted nothing to do with a Harvin III reunion, as Tomlin made a habit of calling him out during practice. According to former Steelers tight end Jace Sternberger, Tomlin once put Harvin III on blast in front of the entire team.

"[Tomlin] was just like, 'Harvin, Pressley Harvin,' whatever he was calling him at the time. He's like, 'This is not the standard, this is junior varsity, not varsity.' He's like, 'I'm not gonna lie, Pressley, you're making me want to go shop right now.'"

Eventually, Tomlin went shopping and found a better punter, only for that replacement to suffer a catastrophic injury in Week 1. Still, it's best not to repeat our mistakes.