Justin Fields may have had a chance to win the starting job this offseason. Head coach Matt Nagy and the Chicago Bears staff made that clear. They had the plan in place to go with Andy Dalton and let the rookie sit. Was that going to stop him? Not at all. Fields said from the start he’s going to do everything in his power to win the job anyway. If he’s not doing that, then it feels like he is doing a disservice to both himself and the organization.
Now here he is. One month into the regular season and officially named the starter moving forward. Excitement is palpable. Bears fans are anxious to see him move forward. The same goes for the coaches. Nagy himself admitted to Albert Breer of the MMQB that the young quarterback came along way faster than anybody in Halas Hall predicted. His ability to absorb information and apply it to his game in such a short time span caught them by surprise. Part of that success comes from Fields’ mindset towards coaching. It stood out from the moment he arrived in Chicago.
“The other thing is this: Justin wants to be coached hard. And when you have somebody that wants to be coached hard, and they don’t take it personal, they just want to be great, because you’re trying to make them great; that’s infectious. It’s so great to have somebody who’s like that. … Justin wants as much of that as he can get.”
People need to understand this isn’t a typical mindset.
A lot of players don’t like being coached hard. They would prefer being supported with a more positive approach. This isn’t a terrible thing but it also runs the risk of them getting lazy with all the necessary fundamentals that go into playing their position. Fields understands that hard coaching isn’t personal. It is meant to make him a better player. As long as you’re able to recognize that? Things tend to work out.
What makes this even more exciting? There is another quarterback it was revealed a few years ago that also likes to be coached hard. His name is Dak Prescott. Former Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks coach Jon Kitna spoke about it multiple times. That was one of the requests Prescott had of him. Don’t let up on anything. Every single detail matters. Now the QB is one of the hottest in the NFL.
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Justin Fields is a perfectionist and that will serve him well
No position is harder to play in professional sports than quarterback. So much information is required to process even before a snap. Let alone after it. This is why only a select few in the world can perform at a high level consistently. It is Fields’ mission to reach that level and won’t do so by cutting corners. That is why he isn’t merely scrutinizing his mistakes. He’ll even give himself bad marks on positive plays too.
One of his best throws of the season came on a 32-yard throw to Darnell Mooney. One that dropped into the basket over the head of the quarterback into the receiver’s arms right as he was fading out of bounds. It helped set up a Bears touchdown. Yet after the game, Justin Fields was upset. He felt if he’d put the ball out in front of Mooney more, then the receiver probably would’ve scored.
It’s little things like that. Obsession with the details.
There is no compromising with Fields. He demands perfection of himself. This is why it is far easier to believe he’ll end up being a success in the NFL. The talent alone is obvious. Big, strong, fast, and a great arm. Yet it is his intelligence, work ethic, and single-minded approach that will end up pushing towards the top.
