Matt Nagy insisted that the decision to start Justin Fields moving forward wasn’t some sort of knee-jerk reaction. It was the result of a gradual series of indications to the coaching staff that the rookie was proving he was coming along much faster than anybody expected. This is true. For the most part. As it turns out, like any course-changing event, there was a singular point of embarkation. In this case, a specific play stood out.
Albert Breer of The MMQB spoke with Nagy about the entire process that led up to Fields getting the nod. When talking about rapid growth, it was never clearer than on one specific passing play. The first time it was called against the Cleveland Browns in Week 3, it was out of shotgun. Fields was supposed to hit a three-step drop and then fire the ball with timing and anticipation to Marquise Goodwin. It didn’t go as hoped.
“A Browns corner had moved tight to the line to press veteran burner Marquise Goodwin. The corner got on top of him, and did a decent job of disrupting his route, but Goodwin would eventually shake loose of the jam and the defender.
Unfortunately for Goodwin, and the team, Fields had given up on him by then, even though the receiver later wound up where he needed to be downfield, and the play went nowhere.”
This was confirmation that Fields wasn’t quite there yet.
Not a huge deal. It often takes time for rookies to learn how to trust the timing of a route and throw it before the receiver is open. The Bears would have to hope the kid would get there eventually. They never would’ve imagined Fields had it figured out literally the next week against Detroit.
“But there they were in the third quarter against the Lions, and there was Fields in a similar call, this time with the ball set to go to second-year phenom Darnell Mooney. Mooney was lined up to Fields’s right, and was even coming off the line with Detroit corner Bobby Price. Fields took a three-step drop, hitched and unleashed a bomb down the sideline, trusting that Mooney would get past Price and pushing Mooney farther outside to, in football terms, throw his receiver open, by putting the ball in a spot to influence Mooney away from Price.”
The play was executed to perfection. Fields kept his eyes to the middle of the field at the snap. Then the moment he hit his back step, he turned and fired the ball to the spot where he expected Mooney to be. If people review the footage, the moment he throws the ball the receiver isn’t open yet. Once it’s in the air though Mooney pops free enough to have it loft right into the basket for a big play to set up a Bears touchdown. Of all the good throws he had in that game, this one was easily the most NFL-esque.
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Justin Fields progress has everybody at Halas Hall shocked
They all knew the kid was talented and smart. They just didn’t think he’d come along this fast. That speaks to his uncompromising work ethic. He is an absolute football junkie. Every waking moment is geared towards making himself better. Nagy told Breer that one of the things that stood out right away was Fields’ desire to be “coached hard.” That means do whatever it takes. Yell at him, insult him, and grind him. It doesn’t matter. If they think it will help, he can handle it.
Similar things were said about Dak Prescott when he first got going in the NFL too. Look where he’s at now. So often former NFL greats will say that it wasn’t their natural talent that carried them to all-time heights. It was their willingness to put in the work. Train hard, study film, and do everything possible to give yourself an advantage on Sundays. Justin Fields seems to have taken that lesson to heart.
Now the results are already showing up.
As he continues to gain experience, he should only play better moving forward. There will still be rookie moments. That is fine. It is about incremental progress. Learning how to play at the NFL speed with efficiency. Maximize the good plays while limiting the bad ones. It is a process every single quarterback must go through. It sounds like the Bears have something special on their hands. Time will tell.
