The Chicago Bears were blown out on Sunday against the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay On Sunday afternoon. The 38-3 loss was a game that was decided at halftime as only three more points were scored in the second half. The Bears’ rookie quarterback had his worse game of the season as he turned the football over five times, including three interceptions. It may be in Chicago’s best interest to bench Fields moving forward to allow him to develop as a quarterback.

Bucs defense shut down Justin Fields 😳

0 TD
3 INT
3 FUM (2 lost)
3 total points pic.twitter.com/rgVCVV6bSO

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 24, 2021

Fields’ Biggest Mistakes Are Not Going Away Or Being Corrected

During Sunday’s loss to the Buccaneers, many of the recurring mistakes that have been seen from Fields during his time as the starting quarterback were seen once again. The Bears’ rookie failed again to spot the free blitzing defending on his first sack and was stripped of the ball. This has been the third game in Fields’ five starts for Chicago in which he has taken a blindside sack because of a blitzing defender and has fumbled while being sacked. He also had another sack in which he was caught holding onto the ball and not having the pocket awareness of knowing that defenders were closing in on him.

After missing two games with injury Antoine Winfield starts off the #Bears game with a sack-forced fumble of Justin Fields. pic.twitter.com/wxYhbN71nB

— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 24, 2021

The number of sacks piling up would not be so concerning if Fields was demonstrating an ability to protect the football but is not. He has now had a sack-strip fumble against the Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, and the Buccaneers. Chicago’s rookie quarterback is not protecting the ball, as defenders are simply batting the ball out of his throwing hand repeatedly. There has not been any sign of improvement in ball security by Fields when dropping back to pass.

Heading into Sunday’s game against the Buccaneers, Fields was the second-most sacked quarterback in the NFL as he has been sacked 18 times and was sacked four times by Tampa Bay. Although the Bears’ offensive line continues to struggles, some of the responsibility for the high sack rate belongs to Chicago’s rookie quarterback. There have been several times in which Fields has missed a quick throw to the open receiver to counteract the blitz by opposing defenses.

Interceptions are also starting to become an issue for Fields as he recorded the first three-interception game of his young career. Through six games, Chicago’s rookie quarterback has thrown six interceptions, with two interceptions coming on tipped passes. Fields’ worst interception against the Buccaneers occurred on an underthrown ball on deep attempt to Allen Robinson. Robinson had beaten his defender, but the throw was behind the Bears’ receiver.

Gene Deckerhoff calls Pierre Desir's interception of Justin Fields, the Bucs are dominating the turnover battle #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/GR4RlNd4fK

— Bucs Rays Bolts (@BucsRaysBoltsYT) October 24, 2021

The most concerning aspect of Fields’ time as the Bears’ quarterback is that he doesn’t appear to be comfortable running the offense. Since the victory over the Lions in week four, Chicago has only had four touchdown drives through three games. Fields isn’t finding the open receiver consistently, while there have rarely been any completions in which receivers can pick up yards after completion. Chicago’s rookie quarterback has yet to develop any rapport with his receivers as no bears’ receiver has had more than five receptions in Fields’ five starts other than Darnell Mooney.

Learning From The Bench May Be Best from Fields

Although there are five rookie quarterbacks currently starting, Patriots’ rookie Mac Jones is the only one performing at a quality level. Heading into the 2021 NFL Draft, Although Jones didn’t have the most significant upside, many analysts believed he was the most readied prospect to play. Fields has already proven that he has all the physical traits to be a top-level quarterback, but it is the mental aspects that he isn’t grasping and won’t learn while playing. Whether it is identifying the free blitzing defender or having a better understanding of the offense, Chicago’s rookie quarterback can learn that from the sideline.

Nagy told CBS' sideline reporter that this is Justin Fields game, but after that pick it might be time to consider turning things over to Andy Dalton

— Alex Shapiro (@AlexShapiroNBCS) October 24, 2021

The Bears have a proven quarterback in Andy Dalton who can allow Fields to sit and watch how to execute the offense. Dalton has over ten years of NFL experience as he can provide the rookie quarterback with an example of how to run the offense from a passing standpoint. Although Dalton isn’t the most exciting quarterback, he was efficient during his six quarters as Chicago’s starting quarterback to start the year. During that time, the former Pro Bowl quarterback was in, the Bears’ offense did record a single three and out.

Fields watching from the sideline will allow him to see how Dalton identifies the pre-snap defender getting ready to blitz and how the veteran can find the open receiver to counteract the blitz. The Bears’ veteran quarterback will also prove a guiding example of finding the open receiver in the defense as in Chicago’s season-opening loss to the Rams, the Bears offense had five receivers catch four or more passes. Dalton may not make the big throws that Fields can make, but will take what the opposing defense is giving them.

Impressive opening drive for Bears. Andy Dalton to Allen Robinson 11-yard touchdown. Bears really good on 3rd down to begin the game.

— Jeff Dickerson (@DickersonESPN) September 19, 2021

Benching Fields shouldn’t be viewed as a failure on the rookie’s part, but something beneficial for his career. The Bears’ rookie is taking a lot of violent hits from multiple defenders, which is only increasing the likelihood of an injury. He can’t learn and grow as a quarterback if he is constantly under pressure and not able to diagnosis what he is seeing before the snap of the ball.

Although the Buccaneers’ pass defense was one of the worst in the league before Sunday’s game, Fields was limited to 184 passing yards. Tampa Bay’s defense was without three of their defensive starters but still held Chicago’s rookie quarterback to a quarterback rating of 44.3. With the game decided by halftime, Fields should have been able to pick up a lot of passing yards and a few touchdowns in garbage time but was still unproductive in the second half.

Tom Brady has four TD passes this half.

The Bears have three TD passes this season.

— Dan Wiederer (@danwiederer) October 24, 2021

Inserting Dalton as the Bears’ starting quarterback should be strongly considered after Fields’ performance in Tampa Bay on Sunday. The rookie was under constant pressure, couldn’t protect the ball, and failed to put points on the board for the offense. Although the offensive line did not protect him and his receivers had several drops, Fields showed a regression instead of progression. For the rookie’s confidence, growth, and safety, he should be moved back to the bench as he is showing he isn’t ready right now.